Sotheby’s Puts Monet’s ‘Iris’ Up for Auction: Record 30-Million-Euro Estimate for the Schlumberger Collection’s Masterpiece

The centerpiece of the sale is Claude Monet’s «Iris» (1924-1925) — the last monumental painting from his iris series, completed a year before the artist’s death. The work has never left the Schlumberger family home in Paris and comes with an estimate of 22–30 million euros — according to Sotheby’s, “the highest estimate ever given for a painting offered at auction in France.”

Alongside it, three other Monet paintings are on offer, including «Saule Pleureur» (Weeping Willow) estimated at 9–12 million euros, as well as three works by Paul Cézanne — among them «La Ferme» (The Farm), “the artist’s largest work ever offered at auction,” estimated at 600,000–800,000 euros. The collection also includes works by Gustave Moreau, Gustave Courbet and Camille Claudel.

Jeanne Schlumberger (1889–1983), matriarch of the French industrial dynasty, was described by Sotheby’s art department co-director Thomas Bompard as “a brilliant collector.” Before the auction, the works will be exhibited in Hong Kong and New York.

The sale comes in the year marking the 100th anniversary of Monet’s death (December 5, 1926), being commemorated with two exhibitions in Paris in late September: «Monet, Painting Time» and «Stories of Landscapes, from Monet to Hockney».

Burimi: The Times / AFP