Bacon Estate v Marlborough gallery to go to High Court in January (The Art Newspaper, May 31, 2001) reports that the Francis Bacon Estate’s lawsuit against Marlborough Fine Art (London) Ltd and Marlborough International Fine Art Establishment will proceed to trial in London’s High Court after a May 15 judgment by Mr Justice Patten. The case could reveal details about Bacon’s finances and private life, and involves the estate’s claim, which may reach up to £100 million; the proceedings likely to start in January. The executor is Prof. Brian Clarke, and John Edwards is the estate’s beneficiary.
La JORNADA informa que el Stradivarius Il Cremonese de 1715, uno de los violines Stradivari mejor conservados, será exhibido en el Museo Amparo de Puebla del 28 de mayo al 1 de junio, procedente de Cremona. Al cierre de la muestra, el violinista Sergej Krylov ofrecerá un concierto con Il Cremonese y la pianista Stefania Mormone.
The Epoch Times reports that American cellist Yo-Yo Harrell left a Stradivarius cello valued at about $4 million in a taxi; the driver Ibrahim returned the instrument and provided his contact information. The cello, made by Stradivari in 1673, was eventually returned to Harrell with arrangements for a reward and concert tickets.
Maurizio Cattelan's sculpture La Nona Ora (The Ninth Hour) sold for $886,000 at Christie’s, exceeding the pre-sale estimate of $400,000 to $600,000. The work features a wax figure of Pope John Paul II felled by a meteorite in a room-sized installation, with shattered glass from the skylight impact.
Jeff Koons created a porcelain sculpture of Michael Jackson and his pet chimpanzee Bubbles that sold at Sotheby's in New York for a record price of almost £4 million. The piece was bought by an anonymous telephone bidder, believed to be a private collector, from Lew Manilow of Chicago, who had been selling it.
Lynn Harrell, a noted American cellist and conductor, had his Stradivarius cello from 1673 returned the next day after he left it in a taxi. The instrument is valued at $4 million. Yo-Yo Ma’s similar incident in 1999 is mentioned for context.
The page reports on a Sotheby’s auction where a ceramic Michael Jackson statue with his chimp Bubbles sold for 5.6 million dollars, and Jackson Pollock’s 1951 Black and White Number 6 fetched 7.9 million dollars; both were anonymous winning bidders, and the Michael Jackson sculpture set a record for a work by pop artist Jeff Koons.
Michael Jackson and his pet chimp Bubbles are depicted in a Jeff Koons porcelain statue from the Banality series, which sold for $5.6 million at Sotheby’s in New York in 2001.
The Berggruen sale in New York fetched a record price for a Cézanne landscape, La Montagne Sainte-Victoire (1888–1890), sold for 38.5 million dollars; the painting was part of the Berggruen collection previously acquired in 1982 from George Embiricos.
Paul Cézanes La Montagne Sainte-Victoire, 1888/90, erzielt 84,5 Millionen Mark bei Phillips in New York, der höchste Preis für ein Landschaftsbild Cézanne. Cézannes Allee von Chantilly I, 1888, versteigert für 20,57 Millionen Mark. Das Porträt Junges Mädchen mit Puppe, 1902/04, brachte 36,3 Millionen Mark ein. Vincent van Goghs Rohrfederzeichnung Weizenernte vor der Stadt Arles erzielte 9,68 Millionen Mark. Nebenforderungen: Cézannes Mädchen mit Puppe und van Goghs Herbstgarten fanden keine Käufer. Gesamtbetrag der Berggruen-Bilder 64,7 Millionen Dollar laut Korrektur; ursprüngliche Schätzung lag bei 35–45 Mio USD (angebliche Gesamt- und Kommentarstellen variieren).
The Los Angeles Times reports that Phillips, de Pury & Luxembourg will headline the spring round of Impressionist and modern art sales with works from Heinz Berggruen's collection, including five by Paul Cezanne and two by Vincent van Gogh, projected to bring $98.5 million to $135 million in total. The auction features Cezanne pieces such as La Montagne Sainte-Victoire valued at $35 million to $45 million, L’Allee a Chantilly valued at $10 million to $15 million, two portraits of a young girl with a doll (estimates $12 million to $18 million and $6 million to $8 million), and a flower garden drawing/painting estimated at $1.5 million to $2 million; the Van Goghs are also part of the Berggruen holdings in the sale.
The Eastman School of Music highlights several undergraduates achieving international recognition: British cellist Guy Johnston, 19, winner of the 2000 BBC Young Musicians Competition, will perform Elgar's Cello Concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the Proms; Violinist Boram Kang, 19, won the National Symphony Orchestra Young Soloist Competition and will perform Glazunov Concerto with the NSO at the Kennedy Center; Violinist Boris Zelichenok, 20, from St. Petersburg, will debut at Carnegie Hall after winning the 2001 Russian-American Music Association Young Virtuosos Competition; Cellist Mimi Furuya, 22, advanced to the first round of the Naumburg International Cello Competition and won third prize at the Kingsville International Competition.