Next month, Sotheby’s will be hosting the most expensive exhibition of Middle East at Abu Dhabi, with artworks valued at $150 million.
Scheduled for October 1 and 2, it will also be the first fine art exhibition by Sotheby’s in the UAE. The exhibition will feature artists such as Vincent van Gogh, René Magritte, and Frida Kahlo, and will be held at the Freiha Art Foundation in Abu Dhabi.
The featured works include (St. John’s Night) (Midsummer Night’s Eve) (1901-3) by Edvard Munch , coming from the private collection of American collector Leonard A. Lauder. Magritte’s Le Jockey perdu (1942) comes from the collection of the Bucksbaum couple. The van Gogh and Gaguin paintings come from Cindy and Jay Pritzker’s Chicago home, itself considered an architectural work of art.
Also Read: New York’s Tilton Gallery Announces Closure
The mystique around the works would work in their favor as well, as most of them haven’t been publically exhibited in many decades. After the Abu Dhabi exhibit, the works would travel to Paris and London, until their final destination of New York, where they would be auctioned. The exhibition also marks the next step in Sotheby’s new partnership since it sold a minority stake to the firm ADQ last year. Julian Dawes of Sotheby’s said, “Presenting these masterpieces in the Middle East was an opportunity we just couldn’t miss. […] This exhibition marks an exciting and true milestone for us as the most valuable and significant Sotheby’s has ever staged in the region.”
