Klimt portrait Lady with a Fan headed to auction with $80-million price tag
LONDON 鈥 The last-ever portrait Austrian artist Gustav Klimt painted before he died is headed for auction this week, with a price estimate of $80 million.
Dame mit F盲cher (Lady with a Fan) 鈥 a portrait of an unnamed woman 鈥 was still on an easel in Mr. Klimt鈥檚 studio when the painter died in February 1918.
It leads Sotheby鈥檚 Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction on June 27 in London, with a price estimate of around 65 million pounds ($80 million). That price tag makes it 鈥渢he most valuable ever to have been offered at auction in Europe,鈥 according to Sotheby鈥檚.
鈥淚t shows Klimt at the very height of his creative prowess, drawing on imagery from Asia of which he was obsessed,鈥 Helena Newman, chairman of Sotheby鈥檚 Europe and worldwide head of impressionist and modern art, told Reuters, referring to depictions of a phoenix, lotus flower and other elements in the painting.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very rare for a Klimt painting of this quality and caliber of a portrait of a woman to come to auction.鈥
Last offered for sale in 1994, the painting is one of a small number of Mr. Klimt鈥檚 portraits in private collections, according to the auction house.
Other artworks being offered in the sale include Lucian Freud鈥檚 painting Night Interior (8 million-12 million pounds), a portrayal of his friend Penelope Cuthbertson, a rare self-portrait by Leonor Fini (400,000-600,000 pounds) and a painted bronze bust by Alberto Giacometti, Buste de Diego au col roul茅 (4 million-6 million pounds), among others. 鈥 Reuters
