Wide range of very worth collectors items belonged to Senator W. A. Clark and Huguette Clark, Reclusive Copper Heiress will be offered by Christie’s Auction house at its New York Spring 2014 sale. The approximately 400 pieces from Huguette Clark’s collection are expected to fetch more than $50 million at two New York sales in May and June. Four masterworks by Claude Monet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir will be presented in the Evening Sale of Impressionist & Modern Art at Christie’s New York on May 6, followed by a dedicated sale titled An American Dynasty: The Clark Family Treasures on June 18. Some highlights from the collection:
Claude Monet’s Nymphéas, estimated at $25 million -35 million. A splendid example of the artist’s pre-eminent theme – his beloved lily pond at Giverny – Clark’s Nymphéas was painted in 1907, during an intense creative period in Monet’s career. The painting, distinguished by its strong color contrasts, aggressive brushwork, and novel vertical format will be the first time it is publicly exhibited since 1926.
Renoir’s Jeunes filles jouant au volant circa 1887, estimated at $10 million -15 million. Jeunes filles jouant au volant is among the most complex compositions from this period of Renoir’s work, depicting five contemporary female figures playing a racquet sport in a rural landscape.
Renoir’s Chrysanthèmes, estimated at $3,5 million – $5,5 million. The painting, executed circa 1876-1880, is one of five large-scale paintings of chrysanthemums that Renoir produced by 1884.
Leading the group of American Art Treasures (scheduled for June) is John Singer Sargent’s Girl Fishing at San Vigilio (estimate: $3,000,000-5,000,000). William Merritt Chase’s A Water Fountain in Prospect Park (estimate: $700,000-1,000,000) was painted in Brooklyn, New York in 1886.
The Clark family has a long-standing history of collecting musical instruments, with a proclivity for rare works by Antonio Stradivari, in particular. The Stradivarius violin to be offered in this sale (estimate upon request) is a particularly fine example, which dates to circa 1731. Known as the Kreutzer, the instrument was named for Rodolphe Kreutzer (b.1766-d.1831), the great French violinist for whom Beethoven composed the famous Violin Sonata No. 9, and once owned this particular example.
Senator Clark and Huguette were both discerning collectors of rare books, leaving behind a vast collection that spanned centuries and genres. Among those to be offered in the sale in June is an extraordinary copy of the first edition Charles Baudelaire’s Les fleurs du mal (estimate: $80,000-120,000), printed in Paris in 1857.
Among the fine examples of European furniture and decorative arts to be offered from the Clark Collection is a fantastic Louis XV chinoiserie mantel clock, circa 1750 (illustrated left; estimate: $100,000-150,000).
