The movie Woman in Gold told the story of a painting depicting Adele Bloch-Bauer, a wealthy woman and hostess of the Viennese Salon. The painting was taken from her Austrian Jewish family by the Nazis in World War II and was among several Gustav Klimt paintings returned to the family in 2006. It later sold for $135 million, making it the most expensive painting ever sold. But the fame and importance of another painting of the same woman by the same artist led to an even higher price. Klimt’s second portrait of Adele Block-Bauer features an elaborate background of colors and gold leaf surrounding the full-length portrait of the well-dressed woman. It had been bought in 2006 by Oprah Winfrey for $87.9 million. A private sale in 2016 brought Oprah $150 million when it was purchased by a “Chinese collector.” The painting is headed for China. Oprah has been “downsizing” her art collection for a few years with the high prices attesting to her good taste.
Experiences like yours are what’s made my life dealing in collectibles the joy that it is. Although my experiences have not ventured into the multimillions that your story did, on occasions they did involve six and seven figure rarities. But it’s not really about the money… it is those special experiences with a significant piece of culture and history.
BTW, I have to ask… did your name come from the falls in Georgia or after the famous Ms. Bankhead? It’s truly a pity so few people today know or appreciate who she was.
To #1: (Donate) Oprah does some awesome charitable projects. I certainly can see where she might want to have an extra $150mil to put toward a cause that has great meaning to her, rather than benefiting one museum. Her choice!
To #2 (Rubbish) That’s great that you can paint better! Get those brushes out, and I hope your paintings sell for millions too. No one can hold you back!
To #3 Great story! (But if I owned it, I might want to retain my privacy.)
I have always loved Klimt’s work.
Regarding your story:
About 5 years ago I had a job that took me to a modest, but very cool 30’s Spanish style home in Santa Monica, CA.
After doing the needful, and I was headed towards the front door, I was suddenly in front of a huge Klimt piece (sorry, forget which one).
I got a great story on this…..the husband of the woman I dealt with was the (previously) unknown attorney, Randol Schoenberg, who took on the case representing Maria Altman, and resulted in their getting back all Klimt’s art from Austria, which had been confiscated by the Nazi’s. Took 8 years. The family gifted the attorney with this gorgeous huge Klimt that graces their entry to this day.
Pretty Cool!
I get the history, but please I can paint better & probably half the world’s population can.
It’s a shame that, with her vast wealth, she couldn’t find it in her heart to donate it to a museum where the piece could be enjoyed by so many.