One of Spanish master Pablo Picasso’s most iconic paintings, “The Woman with a Watch,” created in 1932, is set to be auctioned in New York in November for a staggering estimated value of $120 million. This painting is part of the extensive collection assembled by Emily Fisher Landau, one of the largest private art collectors.
The story behind this valuable work is intriguing. Fisher Landau decided to invest the insurance settlement she received after thieves stole a spectacular jewelry collection from her in 1969. With that money, she chose to replace the jewelry with art, and her collection includes works by renowned artists such as Alexander Calder, Henri Matisse, Piet Mondrian, Jean Arp, Mark Rothko, and many others.
“The Woman with a Watch” is a portrait of Marie-Thérèse Walter, one of Picasso’s most prominent muses and the subject of numerous portraits of the artist. Painted in 1932, this painting reflects an exceptionally productive year in Picasso’s career, known as his ‘annus mirabilis.’
Julian Dawes, head of Sotheby’s Impressionist and Modern Art department, describes the painting as full of joy and passion, with bold primary colors leaping off the canvas.
This auction of 120 works from Emily Fisher Landau’s collection will take place on November 8 and 9 and is expected to raise a total of $400 million. The collector, born in 1920, has been a patron and friend of numerous contemporary American artists, and in 2010 she donated more than 400 works to the Whitney Museum in New York, along with other pieces that make up the Fisher Landau Center for Art in Long Island, New York. York.
The collection includes works by notable artists such as Ed Ruscha, Jasper Johns, Andy Warhol, Georgia O’Keeffe, and more, many of whom were close friends of Fisher Landau.