With the passing of any serious art collector comes intrigue surrounding what will happen to their collection. In the case of the Samuel Goldwyn Jr. estate, the founder of multiple movie studios, you sell. In a collection that’s estimated to be worth between $25 and $30 million, 25 works will be auctioned off by Sotheby’s New York. These include works by David Hockney, Milton Avery, Diego Rivera and two famous pieces by Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse; “Femme au Chignon Dans un Fauteuil” (1948) and "Anémones et grenades" respectively.
As the son of Samuel Goldwyn Sr. — the G in M.G.M, access and taste in artwork ran in the family. As the New York Times noted, “Some historians have traced the start of the art collection to a box-office cold spurt by Samuel Goldwyn Sr. Worried that he had fallen out of touch with postwar audiences, he supposedly turned to art for inspiration. But the person driving the collecting may actually have been his wife, Frances Goldwyn.” With a diverse range in movie making in the family, its no wonder the taste carried over into art. And with such a strong provenance backing these unique originals, it will certainly be interesting to see how the auctions unfold.
Reference:
Barnes, Brooks. Goldwyn Heirs to Sell Art and Hollywood Hills Mansion. New York Times. March 18, 2015.