Monet's 'Iris' sells for 50 million euros in Paris, a French auction record

Sotheby's Paris sale

Sotheby's sold Claude Monet's 'Iris' in Paris on Thursday, 22 October, for 50 million euros including buyer fees, which the house described as the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction in France. The canvas, 1.60 metres high and 1.80 metres wide, was painted between 1924 and 1925, in the last years of Monet's life. Before the sale it had been estimated at between 22 and 30 million euros. Adnkronos reported that six bidders took part in a contest lasting 45 minutes, and that the final 20 minutes came down to two collectors represented by telephone, one by Jen Hua, deputy chairman of Sotheby's Asia, and the other by Josephine Viat. Hua bid on behalf of a private Asian collector. The painting was the centrepiece of the Schlumberger collection, and Adnkronos says its 23 works fetched 74.4 million euros in total.

Provenance and the Schlumberger family

According to Thomas Bompard, co-head of the modern and contemporary art department at Sotheby's France, the painter's family sold the work to Jeanne Schlumberger (1889-1983), a collector. The painting had never left the family's Paris residence and was known only from a black-and-white photograph. N-tv, citing Sotheby's, reports that she bought it through a gallerist directly from Monet, who painted it at Giverny. Sotheby's had presented the estimate in September, calling it the highest valuation ever given to a painting offered at auction in France.

Previous French record and the Christie's sale

The price puts Iris above the previous French auction record, set in 2010 when Amedeo Modigliani's limestone sculpture 'Tête de Caryatide' sold for 43.2 million euros, according to Adnkronos.

Christie's held a separate sale in Paris the same day, selling 26 works for a total of 41.6 million euros including buyer fees. Two Monet paintings in that sale fetched 12.7 million euros for 'Bord des falaises à Pourville' and 3.1 million euros for 'Trois pots de tulipes'. Pierre-Auguste Renoir's 'Jeunes filles au bord de la mer' sold for 5.8 million euros, and Pablo Picasso's 'Nature morte au gruyère' for 3 million euros.

Cézanne works withdrawn for Aix-en-Provence

Sotheby's withdrew three Paul Cézanne paintings, classified as national treasures, from its sale a few hours before the auction began. The house said the withdrawal was made with a view to returning them to Aix-en-Provence, the painter's birthplace. The return is the result of an arrangement between the current owners and the city. Aix-en-Provence, with the support of the French culture ministry, is considering acquiring the works for the Musée Granet, according to Sotheby's.

Monet centenary

The sale falls in the centenary year of Monet's death on 5 December 1926. Two Paris exhibitions, 'Monet, Painting Time' and 'Stories of Landscapes, from Monet to Hockney', are marking the anniversary, according to RTE. Iris had remained in private hands until this sale, and its first public showing came with the auction preview.