Christie’s announced today that it will sell the wide-ranging collection of the late philanthropist and billionaire Jerry Perenchio, the former chairman and CEO of Univision, the US-based, Spanish-language media company.
The multi-faceted collection features European furniture and ceramics, prints, Old Master drawings, sculptures, silver, carpets, memorabilia, Chinese ceramics and works of art.
The items will be offered across two sales, with prices ranging from $500 to $100,000.
In 2014, Perenchio pledged almost 50 major European works to LACMA.
“I never put my name on anything,” he said at the time. “In this case, I’ve decided that it’s worth a temporary step into the spotlight to encourage other collectors to give to LACMA and support the fundraising.”
His gift will anchor LACMA’s new permanent building, slated for completion in 2023. “Los Angeles helped make my career possible,” the collector said.
Perenchio’s Bel Air estate, Chartwell. Image courtesy Christie’s
This marks the second time Christie’s will sell works from the collection. In November 2018, a year after his death, it offered 44 Impressionist and Modern works. Meanwhile, that same year, Sotheby’s sold his wine collection over two sales.
Perenchio created Chartwell, his estate in Bel-Air, through a close five-year collaboration with star French interior designer Henri Samuel. The estate was inspired by California architect Sumner Spaulding’s 1930’s French style Chateau.
The interiors of Chartwell, built around Perenchio’s Impressionist and Modern art collection, were was filled with Louis XV and Louis XVI French furniture, lighting, and Chinese and European carpets.
The decorative objects were assembled “to enhance the world-class quality fine art later bequeathed to LACMA,” according to a statement from Christie’s.
Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, Mouling Rouge. Image courtesy Christie’s.
The fine-art highlights include prints by Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, photographs by Man Ray, a George Bellows lithograph titled A Stag at Sharkey’s, and an oversized Taschen book by Jeff Koons, “G.O.A.T.—Greatest of All Time: Tribute to Muhammad Ali,” signed by the artist and boxer.
A small group of Winston Churchill memorabilia reflects Perenchio’s admiration for the British Prime Minister.
Other highlights include signature Henri Samuel soft furnishings and tables by Marco de Gueltzl. The spirit of 18th-century collecting is embodied in ormolu-mounted Chinese porcelain and a rare pair of early 19th-century Chinese cloisonné enamel censers, according to Christie’s.
Proceeds of the Christie’s sales will benefit Perenchio’s eponymous foundation. The overlapping online sales will run from September 1 to 16, and September 1 to 17.