Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

  • AMMpro
  • AMM Fantasy Collecting Game
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us

Shopping Rothko?

October 15, 2009 by Marion Maneker

Lindsay Pollock has a story on Bloomberg that raises an obvious question: are the Merkin Rothko’s still for sale?

Financier J. Ezra Merkin’s $310 million collection of Mark Rothko paintings, sold earlier this year to a mystery buyer, will be exhibited at Moscow’s new Garage Center for Contemporary Culture next spring. […] Show organizers Marc Glimcher, of the New York gallery PaceWildenstein, and Garage International Coordinator Mollie Dent-Brocklehurst said Abramovich doesn’t own the artworks. They declined to name the owner.

“It’s one of those beautiful stories,” said Glimcher, seated on a bench at London’s Frieze art fair. “There is one cohesive collection that tells the whole story of Rothko’s mature work, and it was all together, and it changed hands.” The new owner “was presented with this story and the response was absolutely,” he said about arranging the show.

Glimcher represented the estate in the not-fully-completed sale from the Rothko estate of some of the works that made up the Merkin collection. Add the fact that Rothko should have special appeal for Russian buyers, and one can ask whether the mystery owner is the gallery or a buyer looking to make another sale in the not-too-distant future.

Abramovich Gallery to Show $310 Million Rothkos Sold by Merkin (Bloomberg)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Sotheby’s to Sell SFMoMA’s $35m Rothko for Acquisitions FirepowerSotheby’s to Sell SFMoMA’s $35m Rothko for Acquisitions Firepower
  • Christie’s Has $35m Rothko + 4 Cornell Boxes from de MenilsChristie’s Has $35m Rothko + 4 Cornell Boxes from de Menils
  • Christie’s Has Giacometti & Rothko from Antoni Tapies Collection for FriezeChristie’s Has Giacometti & Rothko from Antoni Tapies Collection for Frieze
  • Gorvy’s Look Back at Heller, Rothko & Rubin Stirs Ancient RumorsGorvy’s Look Back at Heller, Rothko & Rubin Stirs Ancient Rumors
  • Waldemar Januszczak Takes You Through the Royal Academy’s Abstract Expressionism ShowWaldemar Januszczak Takes You Through the Royal Academy’s Abstract Expressionism Show
  • Christie’s Brings Rothko to Market at $25-35mChristie’s Brings Rothko to Market at $25-35m

Filed Under: Dealers Tagged With: Rothko

About Marion Maneker

LiveArt

Want to get Art Market Monitor‘s posts sent to you in our email? Sign up below by clicking on the Subscribe button.

  • About Us/ Contact
  • Podcast
  • AMMpro
  • Newsletter
  • FAQ

twitterfacebooksoundcloud
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
California Privacy Rights
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Advertise on Art Market Monitor