Microsoft co-founder’s massive art collection sells for a staggering $1.5 billion

Original Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen’s massive art collection has already sold for over $1.506 billion as of Wednesday morning, according to the auction house Christies. More than half of these lots sold well above their estimated price range, and five of the paintings were priced in excess of $100 million. In recent years, according to Christie’s, only two other paintings had commanded such a high price. Now five of them went out in a single night.

Christie’s announced the sale of works 500 years of art history, including both historical and contemporary art, the largest single sale that has already eclipsed records for rich people buying priceless works of art. Many of these paintings made museum tours before ending up in Allen’s private collection. The biggest auction of the evening on Wednesday was that of 19th-century French artist Georges Seurat Les Poseuses, ensemble which went for $149.2 million.

Jody Allen, Paul Allen’s sister, board member of the Paul G. Allen Foundation and custodian of his estate, wrote ahead of the art sale, “Paul truly understood the power and importance of art and has always been happy to share that experience with others.” forbes noticed that plays like those by Diego Rivera The rivals was snapped by Allen for $9.8 million in the last year of his life, in 2018. While it was initially a mystery as to who bought the painting, the art sold for $14.1 million from Allen’s collection. The higher end of the art market will always appreciate the most, but a four-year jump of almost $4 million is pretty extraordinary.

Another recent Christie’s auction from the billionaire couple’s collection Ann and Gordon Getty contained a similar number of lots and went for $1.6 million. Only 62 of Allen’s properties have been sold to date, and they have already fetched multiples of that number. A Christie’s spokesperson told Gizmodo that while the auction house is used to selling large collections, “the Allen collection certainly stands out for the quality, scope and condition of the works.”

Christie’s said the Allen’s Foundation will be Delivery of the sales proceeds to “philanthropy,” though the names of those groups or charities have yet to be revealed if they ever will. During his lifetime, Allen was a member of the Giving Pledge and pledged to donate.the majority‘ of his fortune for various purposes centered on ‘new ideas’ and ‘acceleration'[ing] Discovery.”

Still, Allen apparently had a keen eye for art, finding some of the most sought-after artists and acquiring strong examples of their work. Other artworks on display included works by Paul Cezanne and Jasper Johns. Two paintings by Vincent Van Gogh, Forgive Cyprus and the black and white Parc a Arles with a coin de la Miason Jaune, went for $117 million and $3.7 million, respectively. Some lucky guy sunk $137.8 million into Cézanne’s La Montagne Sainte Victoire. Cézanne painted this mountain dozens of times, and as pointed out by Christie’s, the fattened, distorted way in which the artist depicted the mountain in this rendering inspired later Cubist painters, as noted by CNN.

Speaking of Cubism, one of Pablo Picasso’s earlier works, Quatre baigneuses, went for $3.4 million, well above the estimated $600,000 to $800,000 price range. More modern artworks like the 1981 play by Lucian Freud Large interior, W11 (after Watteau) went for $86.2 million. John’s 1960 painting Small false start, full of tricky, colorless words, sold for $55.3 million, making it the most expensive painting sold in an artist’s lifetime. Allen’s collection also included sculptures by artists such as Alberto Giacomettia and Louise Bourgeois.

And that’s just part 1 of a two-day sale that’s likely to bring in even more. Part II should start today at 10am ET. A live stream of the sale is available here. The biggest tickets went up on Wednesday, and the rest of the collection could cost as little as a few hundred million more, depending on estimated value.

everyone died in 2018 at the age of 65 after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He was, as the vast art collection that is being sold alone proves, extremely rich. The story of his start with Bill Gates and the founding of Microsoft, and their subsequent falling out – particularly when Allen pushed back his cancer diagnosis – was retold in several biographies and other books about reigning tech giant Microsoft. Allen was reportedly at least musically gifted as well according to the famous music producer Quincy Jones.