Calder lithograph found at Circuit City for sale on eBay

Closet cleaning can yield some surprises.

Just ask the company that cleared out Circuit City Stores Inc.'s corporate offices.

Hidden away in a closet in the Henrico County company's headquarters, the staff of Liquid Asset Partners found a 1970 lithograph by artist/sculptor Alexander Calder -- signed.

And now Calder's vibrant blue, black and red "Wave" can be yours.

The lithograph went up for auction yesterday on eBay. Bidding will last for 10 days.

The starting price was 99 cents.

At 9 p.m. yesterday, the lithograph had a high bid of $76.

"Calder is best known for his mobiles," said Emily Smith, curatorial fellow for modern and contemporary art at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. "The lithographs are an example of his very graphic nature."

"He's one of the most influential sculptors of the 20th century and is in many collections nationally and internationally," Smith said.

The piece is signed and numbered -- 113 out of 120.

But the lithograph has been neither authenticated nor appraised.

Liquid Asset Management CEO Bill Melvin Jr. said he would let the market come to a fair price.

"Hopefully it goes to a good home," Melvin said.

Melvin said the piece was found among some art by local artists that the company had bought from a gallery years ago. The local pieces were sold in a liquidation sale, but the Calder was held off to the side.

Calder's wave design is not as popular as those with pyramids or circles, which fetch more money, said Vladimir Gonda, president of DJT Fine Art gallery in New York City, which sells Calder pieces.

"It's just . . . public opinion," Gonda said.

"I would say it should sell at about $1,500 to $2,000."

Gonda's Calder pieces on hand now are priced between $4,500 and $6,500.

One entity that won't be bidding is the VMFA.

"Our acquisition process is not quite so straightforward," Smith said. "It's a little more complicated than bidding at auction."

Contact Emily C. Dooley at (804) 649-6016 or .