Alain Delon's art collection sold for 8.8 million at auction

Bonhams Paris offered the art collection of iconic French actor Alain Delon in an auction that more than doubled its pre-sale estimate for a total of US$8.8 million. All but two of the 83 lots in the June 22 sale found buyers.

The top lot was a painting by Raoul Dufy, “The Bay at Sainte-Adresse” (1906). The painting surpassed a low estimate of about $657,000 to sell for $1.1 million. The second highest was a canvas by Eugène Delacroix, “Arab Horse Tied to a Stake” (1825), which more than doubled the low estimate of about $329,000 to make about $849,000.

“There are two things I consider my legacy; my acting career and my art collection,” Delon said in a statement. “I’m so proud of them both. I bought my first drawing in London when I was 24 and have been acquiring works ever since. People ask me if there is a thread that unites these pieces and I say 'C'est moi!'”

Other lots sold include works by Albert Gleizes, Rembrandt Bugatti, Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot and Jean-François Millet. Delon collected a variety of styles and media, including naturalistic bronze animal figurines by Bugatti, a cubist landscape by Gleizes, and the Renaissance drawing by Beccafumi.

“Alain Delon's collection, which was admired from Hong Kong to New York and Paris, was an unprecedented success, fetching €8 million, more than double its low estimate,” said Arnaud Cornette de Saint Cyr, president of Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, based in Paris. “Alain Delon is a living legend of cinema. His taste and vision have been acclaimed around the world.”

Source: Artnet News