Jewelry, art and antiques from the collection of Kirk and Anne Douglas will go on sale in an online auction this month to benefit the Douglas Foundation. The organization was founded in 1964 to benefit healthcare, education, the wellbeing of women and children, and the arts.
Key items included in the May 18 online-only sale are the painting L’Enfant à L’Oiseaux (1950) by Antoni Clavé which carries an estimate of $20,000-$30,000, and lithographs by artists such as David Hockney, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Jean Porcher, Malcom Susman, Jim Dine and Eric Orr.
Antoni Clavé, L’Enfant à L’Oiseaux (1950). Courtesy of The Douglas Estate.
The 210-lot sale, run by Andrew Jones Auctions in cooperation with Invaluable.com and LiveAuctioneers.com, also features a selection of monographic books, exhibition posters, and a range of furniture and decorative objects from Europe, Asia and Africa.
Also under the hammer are watches by Cartier, Piaget and Audemars Piguet, costume jewelry from Chanel, ornate diamond bracelets, and a striking 18K gold pendant. Vintage designer clothes and accessories are also included, along with a selection of Louis Vuitton trunks.
Chinese blue glazed Jun ware censer. Courtesy of The Douglas Estate.
Kirk Douglas rose to Hollywood fame after World War II when he secured a key role in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers in 1946. He went on to star in iconic films such as Spartacus and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. His portrayal of the painter Vincent Van Gogh in the dramatized biopic Lust for Life earned him the Best Actor awards at the Golden Globes and a Best Actor nomination at the Academy Awards in 1956. He starred in over 60 films during his decades-long career, and his four sons followed him into the entertainment industry.
Anne was working as a publicist when she met Kirk, but had previously worked at a gallery in Paris. After they married, her experience and eye for art and antiques helped the couple build an impressive collection. Kirk died in 2020, aged 103, and Anne passed away a year later, in 2021.
Since its inception, the Douglas Foundation has donated more than $120 million to a wide range of causes, including the Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF), Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the Entertainment Industry Foundation’s Women’s Cancer Research Fund.
The sale items are viewable in-person by appointment at Andrew Jones Auctions in downtown Los Angeles.