Two thousand ten and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta hosted its second annual Collectors Evening, where four acquisitions were approved: Vik Muniz’s Leda and the Swan, after Leonardo da Vinci (2009); an African Elephant Headress (19th century); Spencer Finch’s Bright Star (Sirius) (2010); and Auguste-Jean-Baptiste Vinchon’s Portrait of Nency Destouches (1829). An attendee’s bid for four Delta Air Lines tickets funded the acquisition of Lamentation, a 1946 limestone sculpture by Robert Laurent, with a final sixth work purchased by an anonymous donor.
The artwork discussed is Titian's painting Sacra Conversazione: Madonna with Child with Saint Luke and Saint Catherine of Alexandria, sold in New York for 16.8 million dollars, setting a world auction record for the artist. The painting, circa 1560, had been valued by Sotheby’s between 15 and 20 million dollars, and the previous record was Venus and Adonis sold in London in 1991 for 13.1 million dollars.
Kazimir Malevich’s Painterly Realism of a Football Player–Color Masses in the 4th Dimension (1915) is announced for acquisition by the Art Institute of Chicago, joining works by Georges Seurat, Edward Hopper, El Greco, Gustave Caillebotte, and Henri Matisse in the museum’s collection.
Titian's Sacra Conversazione: The Madonna and Child with Saints Luke and Catherine of Alexandria, a circa 1560 oil on canvas, sold for $16,882,500 at Sotheby's Old Master sale. The work set a new auction record for Titian, contributing to a week of strong results in Old Master sales at Sotheby's and Christie's.
Titian’s Sacra Conversazione fetched 16.9 million dollars at Sotheby’s New York, setting an auction record and surpassing a 20-year-old record of 13.6 million. The work, painted around 1560, had not appeared on the market in about 30 years and went to a private European collector by phone, within a 15-20 million pre-sale estimate.
Luca Carlevarijs's View of the Molo Venice looking West led the Christie's Old Masters and 19th Century Art sale, achieving $4,002,500. The sale also featured Melchior d'Hondecoeter works with record prices, and Sotheby's had a prior related record selling for £2,248,000 ($3,957,746). Nicholas Hall and Ben Hall commented on the category's broad appeal and the growing online interest.
The article reports that Dennis Hopper’s artwork from his collection led Christie’s Interiors sale in New York to 1.95 million of the 3.4 million total, with Hopper’s trove surpassing 14 million across fall sales. The top lot was a 1987 untitled Basquiat painting that sold for 5.8 million, and a 1972 Mao screenprint by Andy Warhol sold for 302,500, noted for including two bullet holes connected to Hopper. Other notable results include Warhol’s Marilyn (1967) at 206,500, Bruce Conner’s Picnic on the Grass (1962) at 96,100, and Theodore Stamos’ untitled (1970) at 56,250.
Edgar Degas’s small impressionist painting Blanchisseuses souffrant des dents, also known as Laundry Women with Toothache, was returned to France after surfacing at a Sotheby’s auction in New York; the work was stolen from the Malraux Museum in Le Havre years ago. The piece measures 6.25 by 8.5 inches and is estimated to be worth $350,000 to $450,000.
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot painting, a Samuel Peploe work, and a Federico Barocci painting were recovered in Scotland after being stolen from Glasgow museums; the total value cited is about 318,000 USD (200,000 pounds). The discovery followed information from the Edinburgh auction house Lyon & Turnbull, with police involvement. The theft occurred in 1990 and was part of a larger Museum Glasgow theft.
Charlie Siem, a violin virtuoso, will perform at Wheaton College in Edman Memorial Chapel on Saturday, January 22. The article discusses his career, collaborations with major orchestras and artists, and his early start with the violin.
The Newtown Chamber Orchestra presents Soloists on Stage, a benefit concert at Bucks County Community College's Gateway Auditorium on Saturday, Jan. 22 at 7:30 p.m. The program features Milton Schwartz (violin) and Russel Bechtloff (piano) with works by Jonathan Kolm and Dvorak, Kreisler; Vivaldi Double Trumpet Concerto with Bucks County Community College students Jeff Heagy and Tyler Fedeli; guest sopranos Sarai Johnson and Gabrielle Antonini with Verdi and Mozart arias; Beethoven String Trio No.1, Op.3 performed by Russell Hoffmann (violin), Marjorie Selden (viola), and Bruce Mikolon (cello). Tickets are $25 adults, $20 seniors, $15 students, free for children 12 and under.
The article reports that Austrian police are pursuing ten valuable violins, including Stradivarius instruments, with estimates up to 1.5 million euros for a single violin. Police say the total value of the stolen violins is about 250,000 euros after break-ins at a musician's home in Vienna, where ten violins were taken but the most valuable instruments were not found by the thieves.
Jewish Humor Central discusses Di Goldene Pave, a five-woman ensemble performing Yiddish and Jewish music at the Blue Note cabaret/jazz club in Milan. The group includes Angelica Dettori, Luviona Hasani, Eriola Gripshi, Cecilia Salmé, and Valentina Verna, who perform vocals, violin, viola, cello, piano, and backing vocals.
The article discusses a court ruling over commissions linked to the sale of Leonardo da Vinci’s Madonna and Child with St Anne and a Lamb, revealing a network of payments involving Accidia Foundation, Gheri Sackler, Daniella Luxembourg, Simon C. Dickinson Ltd, Nasser Kazeminy, Gloria Cohen and others; the sale and subsequent transfers raised questions about unlawful commissions and authenticity concerns.
The Courtauld Gallery faces a renewed Nazi-era spoliation claim for eight drawings following a Dutch decision in a similar case. The claimants are descendants of Curt Glaser, who fled Germany in 1933 after selling his art collection; the case involves works by Domenico Fossati, Domenico Piola, Giovanni Crosato, Giuseppe Bison, Lovis Corinth, Renoir, and a 17th-century Italian school work. The Dutch advisory committee recommended restitution for Jan van de Velde II’s Winter Landscape in 1933, while the UK Spoliation Advisory Panel previously rejected a similar claim against the Courtauld and a separate claim against the Courtauld by Herbert Gutmann’s descendants for Rubens’s Coronation of the Virgin.