ASHEVILLE, N.C. - Like many artists, William Henry Buck (New Orleans, 1840-1888) painted what his clients desired. Subject matter reflected dollars. Typically, that meant hazy landscapes of Louisiana bayous, shanties, moss-draped trees and the shoreline of Lake Pontchartrain. When a client asked him to immortalize the New Orleans Cotton Exchange, not exactly what Buck was trained to paint, he complied.

Now an entirely different side of Buck's body of work has been discovered - his talent for sporting art - with two fine examples scheduled for sale on July 11 at Brunk Auctions. Live Internet bidding during the sale will be provided by LiveAuctioneers.com.

The two signed and dated (1881) Buck hunt scenes had been kept in a private collection for decades. They depict a handsome couple before and during a fox hunt. The central riders - clad in classical riding attire - are Buck's clients, Samuel Henry Buck and his wife, Ann Fleming Buck. She is sidesaddle on a white horse; he, wearing a top hat, rides a dark brown horse. They are surrounded by hunting dogs and other riders, amid rolling hills.

Because the artworks may have been William Henry Buck's first sporting scenes, he relied on classical riding scenes by British master John Frederick Herring Sr. as models, replacing only the heads of the two central figures. William Buck, the New Orleans artist and Samuel Henry Buck, his client, were not related. The consignor of the paintings is a descendant of Samuel Buck.

Samuel Henry Buck is well known in New Orleans historical and political circles. He moved to New Orleans from Virginia in 1865 to become a partner in the cotton firm of Morrison, Buck & Company. As a charter member of the New Orleans Cotton Exchange, he may have commissioned William Henry Buck to paint the building's portrait. Samuel Buck served in the Louisiana legislature from 1876 to 1878. Later he was appointed director general of the World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition. That 1884 event promoted New Orleans' commercial revitalization following the end of Reconstruction and commemorated the centennial of the first shipment of cotton from the United States to England.

Ten Buck paintings - from his tonalist green, umber and ochre landscapes to the Cotton Exchange building - are part of the collection of the New Orleans Museum of Art. The museum's curator of Decorative Arts, John Keefe, said that Buck occasionally added a hunter to his landscapes, but those scenes could not be classified as hunting scenes.

"Buck is one of the top two New Orleans painters," said Keefe. The other New Orleans notable is Richard Clague (1816-1878), who instructed William Henry Buck and founded what has become known as the Bayou School of painting.

The hunt scenes, The Start and The Run, are estimated to bring $20,000 to $30,000 each. Both measure 23¾ inches by 34¼ inches and are in French style 20th-century frames. Also included in the sale are portraits of Samuel Buck and Ann Buck. They, too, were consigned by Samuel Buck's descendant. The unsigned portraits are attributed to William Henry Buck. Their presale estimate is $5,000 to $7,000.

For more information on the William Henry Buck paintings or the 700 other lots in the July 11 sale, call 828-254-6846. View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet on auction day at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.