Beaverbrook v. Beaverbrook Sends Old Masters to Sotheby's

The Beaverbrook Gallery’s loss is Sotheby’s gain as Carol Vogel publishes the firm’s announcement that it will sell a large number of works for the Beaverbrook Foundation which won a settlement over Lord Beaverbrook’s estate:

Although full details of the settlement are shrouded by a confidentiality agreement, the Beaverbrook Foundation won the title to 85 works, valued at more than $100 million, that were deemed by the court to be part of the first Lord Beaverbrook’s original collection. They include works by British masters like George Stubbs, Victorian and Edwardian paintings, and works by a variety of old masters. Sotheby’s confirmed that it would sell about 48 works in a series of auctions in London and New York, beginning with a sale of old master and British paintings in London on Dec. 8. The proceeds from the auctions will benefit the Beaverbrook Foundation, which supports architectural preservation, schools, the Samaritans and other causes.

By far the star of the collection is Claude-Joseph Vernet’s “Grand View of the Sea Shore Enriched With Buildings, Shipping and Figures,” a monumental canvas from 1776 — it measures about 5 by 9 feet — that depicts a seascape at sunset. It will be sold in the important Jan. 27 old master painting auction in New York, where it is estimated to bring $1.5 million to $2 million.

Inside Art: Beaverbrook Auctions (New York Times)