Residing within the dwelling of Pauline Karpidas, a prominent figure in the art world who might be the final representative of her esteemed generation
Prominent Art Collector Pauline Karpidas to Sell Remarkable Surrealist Collection
Pauline Karpidas, a renowned art collector and patron, is set to sell nearly all of her art and custom furniture housed in her London dwelling, where major contemporary artists have socialized. The upcoming sale, expected to fetch some £60 million ($79.6 million), will be the most expensive collection from a single owner ever offered by Sotheby's in Europe.
Karpidas, who has been a private figure who rarely speaks to press, was first introduced to art collecting through her late husband, Constantine Karpidas, who had an interest in 19th-century art including Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Claude Monet. However, it was her encounter with the art dealer Alexander Iolas that sparked her passion for Surrealist art.
Iolas, a formidable dealer of major 20th-century artists, particularly Surrealists, served as a blueprint for international mega-galleries such as Gagosian and Hauser & Wirth today. Karpidas found her own path in art collecting after meeting Iolas, and her collection now includes works once owned by key Surrealist figures like André Breton and Paul Éluard.
The sale includes 250 artworks and design pieces, with the top lot being a later Magritte painting "La Statue volante," estimated to sell for £9-12 million ($12-$16 million). Other highlights include two Warhol works inspired by the painter Edvard Munch, a Dalí pencil drawing of his wife, Gala, a Hans Bellmer painting made just before the artist was imprisoned in France during World War II, a formative, mystical Dorothea Tanning painting of her dog, and the collector's bed, made of sculptural copper twigs and leaves, by Claude Lalanne.
Karpidas has been compared to the late, great female patrons Peggy Guggenheim and Dominique de Menil, and her homes were the efforts of prominent interior designers Francis Sultana and Jacques Grange. In 2023, artist Wolfgang Tillmans depicted Karpidas in an ephemeral piece, casting a sculpture of the collector gazing at a reproduction of the 2nd-century "Three Graces" statue.
The sale will take place on September 17 and 18, and the works will go on view in London earlier in the month. This landmark auction comes just two years after Sotheby's sold off the contents of Karpidas' summer home in Hydra, Greece. Many works owned by Karpida have been passed down through famous hands, such as Surrealism founder André Breton, poet Paul Éluard, gallerist Julian Levy, and the family of Pablo Picasso.
Karpidas, described as a "real diva, in the most positive sense of this word," with a larger-than-life presence and a tendency toward telling grand stories and scrawling, multi-page handwritten letters, has been an influential and connecting force in the art world for decades. Her collection, which reflects her role as a formidable patron and aesthete, is a testament to her cultivated, intuitive engagement with Surrealism and contemporary art, making her a significant figure who helped shape the appreciation and market for Surrealist and related works in the 20th and 21st centuries.
- The upcoming sale of Pauline Karpidas' art and custom furniture, including works from Surrealist artists, will be showcased in the fashion-and-beauty and home-and-garden sections of various magazines and websites, reflecting her influence on lifestyle choices.
- Celebrities and pop-culture enthusiasts might express interest in Pauline Karpidas' art collection, as the sale at Sotheby's includes pieces owned by key Surrealist figures and showcases her role in shaping the appreciation of Surrealist art.
- With her stunning homes designed by renowned interior designers like Francis Sultana and Jacques Grange, Pauline Karpidas is often compared to other influential female patrons, such as Peggy Guggenheim, in discussions about the integration of art and style within pop-culture.
- As Pauline Karpidas' art auction approaches, entertainment outlets will likely cover the event, discussing her larger-than-life personality, her exclusive networking within the art world, and the fortune her collection is expected to bring, making headlines for both the arts and entertainment industries.
