Christie's has announce Elaine: The Collection of Elaine Wynn, which will be showcased during the Fall Marquee Week of Sales this November. The formidable collection reflects the unmatched aesthetic sensibility and incomparable taste of Mrs. Wynn, with examples by art historical icons spanning centuries and geographies. The artworks come from Mrs. Wynn's Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York homes and will be presented across the week of sale as leading highlights, with nine works in the 20th Century Evening Sale, two works in the 21st Century Evening Sale, and subsequent works in the Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale. In total, the collection is estimated to realize in excess of $75 million.
Gillian Wynn remarks: “My mother celebrated every piece that she collected. She felt privileged to live with each and every one, but always understood that she was merely a temporary custodian. Good art moves and provokes us and then must live on to do the same for others.”
Kevyn Wynn continues: “Our mother lived a life filled with passion, conviction and grace. She had uncompromising standards and we have every confidence that Christie's will uphold her vision and legacy.”
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The collection's offerings represent a richly diverse array of artistic icons, encompassing the finest of the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. The earliest painting in the group is a luminous view by Joseph Mallord William Turner, Ehrenbreitstein, or The Bright Stone of Honour and the Tomb of Marceau, from Byron's Childe Harold, (estimate $12-18 million). First shown in an 1835 exhibition at the Royal Academy, the painting has been widely exhibited at leading institutions around the world for centuries and is counted among the artist's most important late masterpieces.
Another rare jewel within the collection—painted more than 150 years after the Turner— is Lucian Freud's The Painter Surprised by a Naked Admirer (estimate $15-25 million), an extraordinarily ambitious canvas completed by the artist in 2005 at the age of 82.
Further highlights include canonical paintings Ocean Park #40 by Richard Diebenkorn (estimate $15-25 million)
and Sunflower V by Joan Mitchell (estimate $12-18 million), two singular examples from the oeuvres of iconic American abstractionists, hailing from cities thousands of miles apart.
Max Carter, Christie's Vice Chairman, 20th and 21st Century Art, remarks, “Elaine Wynn's collecting was guided by the same curiosity, passion and style that marked her profound legacies in business and philanthropy. Her interests spanned over 150 years, from Turner's poetic masterpiece, Ehrenbreitstein, to Freud's culminant self-portrait; from Seurat's exquisite Parisian view to perhaps Richard Diebenkorn's most beautiful Ocean Park #40; from Joan Mitchell's breathtaking Sunflower V to Olga de Amaral. Ms. Wynn was one-of-a-kind and we could not be more honored to work with her family and to celebrate her collection and example this fall at Christie's.”
Sonya Roth, Deputy Chairman, Christie's West Coast, remarks, “It is a true honor to work with Kevyn and Gillian in paying tribute to the legacy of their mother, Elaine Wynn. Mrs. Wynn was a visionary collector who stands among the most generous patrons of our time. Her tireless support for art institutions and educational organizations across the United States has had a deep and meaningful impact on countless lives. We are humbled to steward this inimitable collection at Christie's.”
Max Carter, Christie's Vice Chairman, 20th and 21st Century Art, remarks, “Elaine Wynn's collecting was guided by the same curiosity, passion and style that marked her profound legacies in business and philanthropy. Her interests spanned over 150 years, from Turner's poetic masterpiece, Ehrenbreitstein, to Freud's culminant self-portrait; from Seurat's exquisite Parisian view to perhaps Richard Diebenkorn's most beautiful Ocean Park #40; from Joan Mitchell's breathtaking Sunflower V to Olga de Amaral. Ms. Wynn was one-of-a-kind and we could not be more honored to work with her family and to celebrate her collection and example this fall at Christie's.”
Sonya Roth, Deputy Chairman, Christie's West Coast, remarks, “It is a true honor to work with Kevyn and Gillian in paying tribute to the legacy of their mother, Elaine Wynn. Mrs. Wynn was a visionary collector who stands among the most generous patrons of our time. Her tireless support for art institutions and educational organizations across the United States has had a deep and meaningful impact on countless lives. We are humbled to steward this inimitable collection at Christie's.”
