Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

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

Taubman Estate Expected to Make $500m

September 3, 2015 by Marion Maneker

Modigliani, Portrait of Paulette Jourdain (25-35m USD)

Sotheby’s announces the sale of Alfred Taubman’s estate which is expected to reach $500m over 500 pieces of art. The surprise isn’t that Sotheby’s got the estate, Taubman was a transformative owner of the auction house, but that it was ever a competition:

Sotheby’s said the consignment—which will offer a sweeping array of artworks by Raphael, Thomas Gainsborough, Pablo Picasso and Mark Rothko—is the most expensive estate the auctioneer has ever handled. If successful, Mr. Taubman’s estate could surpass Christie’s record-setting $477 million sale of designer Yves Saint Laurent’s estate six years ago. […]

The most valuable pieces in the roughly 500-piece estate, amassed over a half-century of collecting, will be offered in a Nov. 4 single-owner sale called “Masterworks,” with additional pieces included in sales of contemporary art, American art and Old Masters on Nov. 5, Nov. 18 and Jan. 27, 2016. […]

The priciest pieces in the estate are thought to be Picasso’s “Woman Seated in a Chair” from 1938; Willem de Kooning’s colorful abstract from 1976, “Untitled XXI”; and Modigliani’s 1919 view of a demure woman, “Portrait of Paulette Jourdain.” All three carry a low estimate of $25 million. A pair of Mark Rothko abstracts are each estimated to sell for at least $20 million. The Rothkos are “Untitled (Lavender and Green)” from 1952 and “No. 6 / Sienna Orange on Wine” from 1962.

Bloomberg got one of the better quotes from Sotheby’s Simon Shaw:

“He was a self-made man and his collection was put together with his own eye,” said Simon Shaw, co-head of Sotheby’s Impressionist and modern art department worldwide. “While he is a very well-known figure, he is not known as a collector. It will be a surprise for people.”

Alfred Taubman Record $500 Million Art Trove Lands at Sotheby’s  (Bloomberg Business)

Sotheby’s to Auction $500 Million Art Collection of Taubman Estate – WSJ

Picasso, Femme a la Guitare dans un Fauteuil (500-700k USD)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Sotheby’s Paris Art ContemporainSotheby’s Paris Art Contemporain
  • Meet Gerhard RichterMeet Gerhard Richter
  • Picasso Market On Fire from Top to BottomPicasso Market On Fire from Top to Bottom
  • The Face Gets Her Close-UpThe Face Gets Her Close-Up
  • Gagosian’s View of Emerging MarketsGagosian’s View of Emerging Markets
  • Is the Rose Closing an Assault on the Idea of Art?Is the Rose Closing an Assault on the Idea of Art?

Filed Under: General

About Marion Maneker

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

Top Posts

  • After Pandemic’s Rapid Change, Sotheby’s Has 8 Predictions for 2021
  • Keith Haring’s 1989 Retrospect Comes to Sotheby’s London Prints Sale
  • Tony Podesta's Secret Art Buying
  • Four of Picasso's Women Valued at $28m Come to Christie's from Rose-Walters Collection
  • A Season of Improvisation: Fall 2020 New York Modern and Contemporary Art Auction Analysis
  • Norman Rockwell's Not Gay. But Is He a Great Artist?
  • Phillips Includes $2.5m Norman Rockwell Painting in November Evening Sale
  • Roy Lichtenstein’s Top Ten Auction Prices
  • Rauschenberg’s Buffalo II Leads Mayer Collection at Christie’s
  • Re-discovered John Constable Painting at Sotheby's in December
  • 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