Itzchak Tarkay Auction Prices and Value Guide

Itzchak Tarkay auction prices are tracked in Appraisily's artist market index, with source-directory coverage of 8,297 records. Use this page to review sold-lot activity, market context, and valuation factors before requesting a formal appraisal.

Itzchak Tarkay auction prices: quick answer

Itzchak Tarkay auction prices depend on medium, size, date, condition, provenance, edition details, attribution confidence, and recent comparable auction sales.

Artist
Itzchak Tarkay
Source records
8,297
Market update
2026-02-16

Artist context

About Itzchak Tarkay

Itzchak Tarkay (1935–2012) was an Israeli painter and graphic artist born in Subotica, on the Yugoslav-Hungarian border, who emigrated to Israel in 1949. He is recognized for a distinctive figurative style characterized by bold color, fluid contour lines, and recurring depictions of women in moments of leisure and quiet contemplation. Active from the mid-1950s, Tarkay worked across oil painting, serigraphy, drawing, and mixed media. His work draws on post-Impressionist color sensibility while maintaining a recognizable modern idiom that made him one of the most widely collected Israeli artists of his generation. Notably, Tarkay successfully defended the trade dress of his signature style in Romm Art Creations Ltd. v. Simcha International, Inc., a landmark case affirming that an artist's distinctive visual language can receive legal protection against imitation.

Israeli modern figurative artOil paintingSerigraphy (screen printing)DrawingMixed mediaFemale figures in repose and leisure settingscafé and interior scenes

Common works and media

Common works by Itzchak Tarkay include color serigraphs of female figures in interior and garden settings, original oil paintings on canvas, acrylic and mixed-media compositions, and works on paper in ink and watercolor. Serigraphs are often signed and numbered in editions. Typical subjects include reclining or seated women, café scenes, floral still lifes, and domestic interiors rendered in saturated color with strong outlined forms.

Market and appraisal context

Itzchak Tarkay maintains an exceptionally liquid secondary market with 2,438 recorded auction lots, of which 1,693 carry a realized price — one of the broadest auction footprints among modern Israeli artists. Prices span from $5 for small-format seriolithographs to $40,000 for premium original paintings, though the interquartile range ($100–$450) and median of $205 confirm that the majority of traded works are editioned prints and serigraphs. The trailing 12 months saw 281 lots, down from 344 the prior year, suggesting a modest cooling in supply but still-high turnover. Ten or more auction houses handle Tarkay regularly, including DuMouchelles, Hill Auction Gallery, Lion and Unicorn, and Leonard Auction, indicating broad regional distribution across US and international salerooms. Original oils and unique mixed-media works consistently outperform prints: a mixed-media on paper achieved $500 at Leonard Auction (March 2026), while a signed watercolor painting reached $400 at Hill Auction Gallery (December 2025), and a serigraph titled "Seated Women with Ships" realized $1,200 at Everard Auctions (October 2025). Standard signed and numbered serigraphs typically trade between $75 and $250, with larger-format or rarer editions occasionally reaching $375–$450.

Auction categories and appraisal factors

Common auction categories

  • Serigraphy (screen printing)
  • Prints and multiples
  • Oil painting
  • Works on paper
  • Mixed media

Value drivers

  1. Medium: original oil paintings command higher values than serigraphs and prints
  2. Edition: numbered and signed serigraphs; edition size affects value
  3. Authentication: Tarkay successfully litigated trade dress infringement, so attribution questions are relevant for appraisal
  4. Prolific output: with over 8,000 recorded lots, availability is high across auction categories
  5. Medium: original oil paintings and unique mixed-media works command significantly higher prices than serigraphs, lithographs, or seriolithographs; the $40,000 auction maximum likely reflects a major original, while most prints trade under $500.
  6. Edition size and number: signed and numbered serigraphs in smaller editions carry a premium; edition fraction (e.g., low number or artist proof) can affect value within the same title.

Appraisal caveats

  • Tarkay's large body of work includes many editions and multiples; collectors should confirm medium, edition number, and signature authenticity when evaluating individual pieces.
  • The Getty ULAN record was unavailable at research time; identity data is cross-confirmed via VIAF, Library of Congress, and RKD instead.
  • The price distribution is heavily skewed: the median is $205 but the maximum is $40,000, reflecting the wide gap between editioned prints and original paintings. An appraisal must correctly identify medium before applying comparables.
  • Trailing 12-month volume (281 lots) is down approximately 18% from the prior year (344 lots), which may indicate softening demand or simply supply variation; a single year's change is not a definitive trend.

Evidence

Sources for artist context

This source-grounded artist context passed Appraisily's promotion threshold: high confidence, strong sources.

Source-grounded artist Markdown

Data basis

This page is built from Appraisily's public auction market index. Private transactions, incomplete sale feeds, and attribution changes may not be fully represented.

LLM-readable Markdown summary for Itzchak Tarkay

LLM summary index · LLM full index

Artist value FAQ

How much is Itzchak Tarkay worth?

Comparable public auction sales are the best starting point, but final value depends on the specific artwork, condition, size, medium, provenance, and attribution confidence.

Can Appraisily value my Itzchak Tarkay artwork?

Yes. Appraisily can review photos, dimensions, signatures, condition, provenance, and comparable market data to prepare a current valuation.