Library paintings could fetch $150,000

If all the paintings are sold, estimates are that the library could get $47,000 to $151,000.

The money could help provide a cushion for future state reductions as the library funding was cut 6 percent last year and officials expect additional reductions next year, said Sally Rizer, director of the Clark County Public Library.

The money will be used to benefit the library and the community, Rizer said.

State funding for the Clark County library was reduced 26 percent in 2008, forcing officials to reduce hours and make other changes.

In 2010, voters approved a 1.32-mill levy — a first for the library — that generates $3 million a year. At the time, state revenue had declined by about $2 million and the library expenses had increased $1 million annually.

Clark County Public Library board chair Dan O’Keefe said the paintings had been given to the library in 1921 by the Warder family and had been on the walls at the Warder Park Library until the early 1970s.

After the library remodeled, the paintings had been stored in the basement because they’re too large to hang due to their size and weight, he said.

O’Keefe said the library’s art committee considered placing the paintings in an art gallery and with nine different art dealers. In the end, it opted for auction.

“The most efficient and best arrangement would be the auction route,” O’Keefe said.