$2 Million Rodin "Kiss," Record-Breaking Constable Among London Sales
- July 03, 2012 10:21
At the Masterpiece London fair, Sladmore Gallery sold a bronze of Auguste Rodin's “The Kiss,” cast during the artist's lifetime, to a Swiss collector for $2 million, reports Bloomberg.
Masterpiece began the final week of summer sales in London where some $313 million in art is offered to an international crowd.
On July 3, Christie's sold an important work by English landscape artist John Constable for an auction record of 22.4 million pounds ($35 million).
The last in private hands of a series of works that includes "the Hay Wain," "The Lock" came from the collection of Baroness Carmen "Tita" Thyssen-Bornemisza who was publicly criticized by a family member and others for the sale, according to Reuters.
The Spanish baroness inherited an extensive art collection from her late husband and much of it is housed in Madrid's Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum.
Christie's old master and British paintings evening sale brought in 85.1 million pounds, the highest total ever for the category.