A legendary private art collection valued at more than $450 million, featuring an 1890 Vincent van Gogh painting estimated at $180 million, has gone on public display in London for the first time before a November 18 auction at Sotheby’s in New York.
Unveiling the Legendary Blaquier-Arrieta Collection
For decades, the private art assembly formed by the late Argentinian sugar heiress Nelly Arrieta de Blaquier and her husband Carlos Pedro Blaquier remained under lock and key at their estate outside of Buenos Aires.
Art world observers have long whispered about the assembly, which spent more than half a century hidden from view. Philip Hook, a former director of impressionist and modern art at Sotheby’s, described the public unveiling as a historic moment for the market.
Hook added that the holdings represent one of the last great private collections of impressionist and post-impressionist art formed during an era when major museum-quality examples were still attainable.
A Miniature Musée d’Orsay Built in London
The timing of the London exhibition is closely tied to the history of how the collection was built. Seven of the 12 paintings offered by Sotheby’s were acquired from the Lefevre Gallery on Bruton Street during the 1970s, when the Argentinian couple travelled to London nearly every year to acquire major works.
There was a time when you could walk into a top gallery in London or New York and, over a few years, build something of real museum quality.
Simon Shaw, senior art adviser at Sotheby’s, via Independent
Shaw noted that the grouping feels like a small museum, functioning essentially as a private Musée d’Orsay opening its doors to the public for the very first time. Helena Newman, Sotheby’s chairman of Impressionist and Modern art, called the London stop a time capsule of that golden moment in the art market.
Masterpieces Leading the $450 Million Sale
The auction is anchored by two monumental works that have not been seen in public for more than 50 years. The headlining lot is Vincent van Gogh’s Châtaigniers en fleurs
(Chestnut Tree in Flower), painted in May 1890 during the final two months of the artist’s life. Created shortly after his release from the psychiatric asylum at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence and his arrival in Auvers-sur-Oise, the canvas reflects a brief, intense burst of optimism.
Running alongside the Van Gogh is Paul Cézanne’s late figure painting Arlequin
(Harlequin), painted between 1888 and 1890. It is one of only two works from Cézanne’s 15 late figure paintings remaining in private hands. Valued in the region of $120m, it is poised to establish a new auction record for the artist.
| Artist | Artwork | Estimated Value |
|---|---|---|
| Vincent van Gogh | Châtaigniers en fleurs (1890) | $180m (£136m) |
| Paul Cézanne | Arlequin (1888–90) | $120m |
| Pierre-Auguste Renoir | En Canot (Jeune Fille à la Barque) (1877) | $25m – $35m |
| Camille Pissarro | La Place du Théâtre-Français (1898) | $30m – $40m |
| Edgar Degas | Avant La Course | $20m – $30m |
Customs Resolution and International Exhibition Schedule
Scheduling complexities kept the Van Gogh masterpiece out of the initial London display, though Sotheby’s plans to feature it during subsequent stops on the international tour.
Following the two-day preview in London, the collection will travel to Taipei, Hong Kong, and Paris.
The November 18 New York Auction
All 12 lots will ultimately converge in New York for the high-profile evening sale.
The auction takes place on November 18 at Sotheby’s in New York, where the market will test the appetite for museum-grade private holdings making their first appearance in over half a century.