A very considerable gift of one billion dollar in art has been bestowed upon the Metropolitan museum of Art in New York.
The benefactor, cosmetics tycoon, Leonard A. Lauder, has made the gift to the museum of 78 artworks in what is already been described as the most important and extensive Cubist art collection.
In the Lauder collection are 33 Picasso, 17 Braques, 14 Legers and 14 more by Gris. The collection as it stands, is valued at over 1 billion dollars.
What is more important to the museum however, is the fact that the gift would undoubtedly constitute the biggest boost to its now flagging attendance and revenue once the collection is in place. It would also place the museum as the foremost museum in regards to modern art.
It would in fact, rival MOMA's collection of modern art, the Hermitage in Russia, and the Pompidou in Paris.
The gift comes after years of talks between the Met and Mr. Lauder. Although Mr. Lauder declined to answer the question of who else had asked for the collection, some suspect that the National Art Gallery in Washington was one of them.
But a New Yorker always a New Yorker will remain. And Mr. Lauder knew what value the art collection would mean to his city. And Lauder's intentions in all of his gifts have been so that the impact of the gift would be 'transformative', so that he wanted to ensure that even this time, his gift would achieve his goal.
Mr. Lauder has not come by his collection purely for investment purposes, or as part of a market trend. He had set out from the beginning to collect art for art's sake, with a laser sharp focus on how to build the collection around a particular current of art. He focused on Cubism nearly 40 years ago, and has continued steadily since.
What is most interesting about Mr. Lauder's declarations on the gift and his collecting habits was that he had focused on Cubism long ago chiefly because it was largely available back then due to the lack of interest in the type of art. It was also relatively inexpensive, because it was quickly supplanted by Impressionism and post-impressionism as the main currents coveted by collectors.
He has always believed that to build a good collection one must have a vision and a single objective and devote all one's energy to it.
It also took him many years just to pursue and acquire a single painting. He enlisted the help of Emily Braun, the art historian who has been instrumental in picking and choosing the finest works that came up for sale in the market.
Because of the sharp focus on the quality and aspect of the art he bought, Mr. Lauder was able to secure paintings that are also historically significant, such as Braque's "terrace at the hotel Mistral", and "Trees at L'Estaque".
Another very important painting in his collection is Picasso's "oil Mill", which was the first cubist painting seen in Italy, which then went on to influence many Italian artists.
The gift of Mr. Lauder's collection will also place Cubism as the most important presence in the Metropolitan museum, due to the importance of the pieces and the scope of the collection.
Source: CNBC 4.10.13
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