Sotheby’s announces the single owner sale of Latin American art from the collection of Lorenzo Zambrano, the CEO of Cemex, who is selling one of the first Diego Rivera murals ever to appear at auction:

On 24 November 2014 Sotheby’s New York will present the most important collection of Latin American Art ever to appear at auction with A Vision Of Grandeur Masterworks From The Collection Of Lorenzo H. Zambrano. The prestigious single-owner evening sale will offer outstanding works by many of the most famous names in 20th Century Mexican art, including Diego Rivera, Rufino Tamayo, Francisco Toledo, and Leonora Carrington. The collection was assembled by Lorenzo H. Zambrano, a leading businessman, visionary collector, and generous patron of the arts who meticulously put the group together over several decades. Reflecting the significance of the works being offered, the sale is expected to fetch $30/40 million, by far the highest estimate ever placed on a Latin American Art auction. Highlights will be exhibited in Mexico City, Los Angeles, Miami and New York in the lead up to the sale.

Lorenzo Zambrano was one of Mexico’s leading businessmen. As Chief Executive of Cemex since 1985 he led a series of expansions and acquisitions across the globe to create the biggest cement maker in the Americas. Famously, Mr. Zambrano applied the same methodical and diligent approach he used in business to his collecting. Known as a connoisseur across many fields, as an art collector Mr. Zambrano primarily focused on acquiring the very best works by the mid-century Mexican masters but also encompassed self-portraiture and outstanding paintings by other Latin American artists.

The Zambrano collection is led by Diego Rivera’s Río Juchitán – the first ever mural by the artist to appear at auction (above). The vast scene is spread over four panels and immerses the viewer in the bucolic glory of the Mexican countryside. Dating from circa 1955 Río Juchitán draws heavily on the work of Paul Gauguin and is one of the last late masterpieces of Rivera’s career outside of a museum. Throughout the 1950s Rivera painted many brilliant society portraits, but works such as Río Juchitán show he stayed connected to his roots in working class Mexican society.