The Macklowe Collection to be Sold by Sothebys

September 24, 2021

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Moments ago, at a global livestream event, Sotheby’s revealed details of the forthcoming landmark sales of The Macklowe Collection — one of the most important collections, of any kind, ever to come to the market. Each of the 65 works is a consummate masterpiece in its own right; together they constitute an unrivalled ensemble that charts the highpoints of Western artistic achievement of the last 80 years.

The Most Significant Collection of Modern & Contemporary Art Ever to Appear on the Market

To be Offered in Two Stand-Alone Auctions, November 2021 & May 2022

Acquired over the course of half a century, the collection is the fruit of decades of searching, honing, and refining, driven by immense patience and an innate understanding of quality. Estimated to realize in excess of US$600 million — the highest estimate ever placed on any collection to come to auction — The Macklowe Collection will be offered across two dedicated evening single-owner sales at Sotheby’s in New York, on November 15 this year, and in May 2022.

“The Macklowe Collection is a collection formed as the result of decades of rigorous, fearless and informed pursuit. The works are not only defining masterpieces of each artist’s aesthetic, they also speak to our emotions, our intellect and the daunting complexities of the human condition. The rarity, power and exceptional quality of Giacometti’s Le Nez — a fundamentally modern work — sets the tone for the entire collection, which continues, without pause, through to works created in the last decade.”

Brooke Lampley, Sotheby’s Chairman & Worldwide Head of Sales for Global Fine Art

“These two sales — both uninterrupted streams of masterpieces — will be era-defining. While the voracious appetite for the best of the best is a constant in our world, the coming to the market of The Macklowe Collection will undoubtedly mark a watershed moment, elevating the playing field for collectors and for the art market as a whole.”

Mari-Claudia Jiménez, Sotheby’s Chairman, Managing Director & Worldwide Head of Business Development for Global Fine Art

The first of the two sales will feature 34 works which together encompass an extraordinary breadth of 20th- and 21st-century art, ranging in date from the 1940s to works painted less than a decade ago, and including masterworks by Alberto Giacometti, Mark Rothko, Cy Twombly, and Andy Warhol. The sale will also shine a light on a distinguishing feature of the collection as a whole: its enormous depth. Many artists – among them Jeff Koons, Brice Marden, Agnes Martin, Sigmar Polke, Gerhard Richter, Cy Twombly and Andy Warhol – are represented by multiple works, each one marking a distinct and critical moment in their respective careers, and together forming an insightful portrait of the artists’ evolution over time.

THE MACKLOWE COLLECTION, NOVEMBER 15:

SELECTION OF HIGHLIGHTS

_{Alberto Giacometti, Le Nez. Estimate on request.}

_{Conceived in 1947; this version conceived in 1949 and cast circa 1964.}

“Giacometti’s Le Nez dominates a room like few other sculptures I have ever seen. With its extraordinary combination of references and influences, from Surrealism to African sculpture to Jean-Paul Sartre, it encapsulates the aesthetic and intellectual essence of Giacometti’s art.”

Helena Newman, Sotheby’s Chairman, Europe, and Worldwide Head of Impressionist & Modern Art

_{Mark Rothko, No. 7, 1951. Estimate on request.}

“A pivotal part of The Macklowe Collection for three decades, No. 7 epitomizes the best of Rothko’s palette, light and mood. Widely exhibited in some of the world’s greatest museums, this moving painting speaks to the caliber of the entire collection in which every artist is represented at their best.”

Lisa Dennison, Sotheby’s Chairman, Americas

_{Andy Warhol, Nine Marilyns, 1962. Estimate: US$40–60 million.}

“This is one of the most arresting paintings of Warhol’s entire revolutionary output and a key masterpiece of his early Pop icons. In Marilyn Monroe, Warhol found the ultimate embodiment of his artistic obsessions: the cult of celebrity and the spectacle of death and disaster. Repeated nine times with incredible precision, his depiction here is a haunting testament to the enduring power of Warhol’s art and one of the very strongest renderings of his most important subjects.”

Grégoire Billault, Sotheby’s Chairman for Contemporary Art

_{Cy Twombly, Untitled, 2007. Estimate: US$40–60 million.}

“This work — one of my favorites in the collection — takes its inspiration from Asia, where it will also undoubtedly appeal. But beyond that, great art transcends all cultural boundaries; no matter what your native language, The Macklowe Collection speaks powerfully in a voice that needs no translation.”

Patti Wong, Sotheby’s Chairman, Asia

_{Gerhard Richter, Seestück, 1975. Estimate US$25–35 million.}

“Evoking the Romantic landscapes of Caspar David Friedrich, John Constable’s famous cloud studies, and the atmospheric light effects of J.M.W. Turner, this spectacular work is at the same time resolutely contemporary — a powerful illustration of Richter’s towering status among today’s living artists.”

Oliver Barker, Sotheby’s Chairman, Europe and Auctioneer for the two sales

_{Willem de Kooning Untitled XXXIII from 1977 (estimate US$12–18 million) and Untitled IV from 1983 (estimate US$10–15 million).}

“These two masterpieces, both major milestones in the development of de Kooning’s artistic practice, together illustrate the remarkable evolution of his art: each succinctly embodies the preoccupations and stylistic themes that defined the artist’s output in two critical decades.”

Michael Macaulay, Sotheby’s Senior International Specialist for Contemporary Art

_{Pablo Picasso, Figure (Projet pour un monument à Guillaume Apollinaire) Estimate: US$15–20 million.}

_{Conceived in 1928; this version enlarged and executed in 1962.}

“This powerful and complex sculpture is homage to a profoundly significant friendship between the artist and the writer who most closely shared his ideals. Fittingly, Picasso kept this work in his possession until the end of his life - reflecting the importance to him, both of the sculpture itself and of the memory of his much-missed friend.”

Simon Shaw, Sotheby’s Vice Chairman, Fine Arts Division

_{Sigmar Polke, Rasterbild mit Palmen, 1966.}

_{Estimate: US$8–12 million.}

“The depth of works by Polke is one of the most exciting facets of The Macklowe Collection. Over the course of his career, Polke was resolute in one thing: constantly changing course. A consummate chameleon and alchemist, Polke’s experimentation in style, subject and medium challenged the possibilities of artistic expression. The five works in The Macklowe Collection — each from distinct periods — offer a concise survey of his career, and provide a tremendous opportunity for collectors to acquire some of his most important works.”

David Galperin, Sotheby’s Head of Contemporary Art, Americas

Highlights from The Macklowe Collection are now on view to the public in Sotheby’s New York galleries until September 12, after which highlights from the November sale will be exhibited around the world as outlined below. Overview details on the collection are currently to be found on www.sothebys.com, where the full catalogue —complete with illuminating essays, videos and interactive features — will be available later this fall. Once the collection returns to Sotheby’s New York galleries ahead of the sale in November, there will also be a full virtual and physical program of talks, tours and other events — details of which will follow.

The Macklowe Collection, November 15, 2021. Preview Exhibitions:

New York: September 9 – 12

Taipei: September 18 – 19 (By Appointment Only)

Hong Kong: October 7 – 11

London: October 9 – 17

Los Angeles: October 14 – 17

Paris: October 21 – 24

New York: November 5 – 15

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