Picasso: Femme au chapeau
Picasso leads Christie’s auction, May 2009
Pablo Picasso’s late period Mousquetaire à la pipe from 1968 was the top lot of the evening, selling for $14,642,500 million. The vivid, full-length image portrays the artist in one of his favorite guises: the brave and adventurous musketeer
]]>
The second highest lot of the evening, equally vivid in palette,was Picasso’s late period Femme au chapeau from 1971 which fetched $7,754,500. This iconic portraitwas hand-selected by Picasso for inclusion in his second solo exhibition at the Palais des Papes inAvignon, France and had been a centerpiece in the private collection of the artist and Oscarnominatedfilm director Julian Schnabel since 1989.
Works of high quality and prestigious provenance performed exceptionally well. In keeping withChristie’s recent strong sales for Alberto Giacometti’s sculptures – including a world auction recordset in May 2008 for Grande femme debout II – the artist’s Buste de Diego (Stele III), a rare full-sizebronze bust balanced on a tall, narrow plinth, sold for $7,698,500. This work was fresh to themarket, having been acquired by the Gimbel family in 1959, the year after it was cast. The two otherworks offered from this collection also performed well. Matisse’s Nu à la serviette blanche, an earlyfigure painting that captures the artist at a moment of bold innovation fetched $3,218,500, alongwith a unique study by Joan Miró.
Follow us on:
