A private collection that features the early works of Picasso and has never before gone under the gavel is set to be auctioned by Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr in Paris next month.
On 5th June at 6 Avenue Hoche in the French capital, Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr will be presenting an incredibly rare and valuable private collection of Impressionist and Modern artworks that includes some of Pablo Picasso’s earliest pieces.
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Among them is El campanar de l’església del Pi, one of several tributes made by the legendary artist to his adopted hometown of Barcelona. The piece is a beautiful, sentimental view of the landscape overlooking the Church of Santa Maria del Pi, one of the city’s most recognisable and iconic Gothic landmarks.
“In this view of the city, painted from the balcony of his studio on the neighbouring street of Nou de la Rambla, which Picasso shared with his friends Ángel Fernández de Soto and Josep Rocarol, we find his taste for simplified lines and efficient composition, punctuated by successive shots. The foreground, composed of roofs, is executed with rapid, confident touches,” say representatives for the auction house of this exquisite piece.
What makes it even more poignant is that the painting coincides with a transitional period in the artist’s life, following the 1901 suicide of his great friend Casagemas, an event that influenced the latter blue hues of his work.
El campanar de l’església del Pi has been held in private collections for the entirety of its existence until now, and the auctioneers are estimating that it will sell for a figure in the vicinity of €600,000 to €800,000.
Other notable pieces going under the gavel include an Édouard Vuillard piece called Madame Vuillard en peignoir rouge, painted around 1911, which is expected to go for €140,000 to €160,000, and an exquisite Rembrandt Bugatti entitled Trois panthères marchant. Designed and executed around 1905, this work is an utterly unique piece that auctioneers predict will fetch between €3,500,000 and €5,500,000.
Click here for more information on this major art auction event.
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Bonhams to auction iconic panther sculpture by Rembrandt Bugatti
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Photo of Picasso’s El campanar de l’església del Pi courtesy of Bonhams