ART AND MONEY

Les baigneurs au repos , 1875-76 (160 Kb); Bathers at Rest; Oil on canvas, 82 x 102.2 cm (32 1/4 x 39 7/8 in); The Barnes Foundation, Merion, Pennsylvania.

“It is a matter of being persistent and finding these works and going for them,” says Simon de Pury, chairman of Phillips, de Pury & Luxembourg, who adds, “People who go after these things do not want to point them out and do not want them pointed out.” When major works in private collections become available, astounding sums are paid. “Iconic paintings by key artists are what this market seems to want,” says New York dealer Michael Findlay. “There are certain artworks that are hot eternally—a Tahitian Gauguin, Monet’s “Water Lilies”—iconic things that collectors talk about generically rather than specifically.” Wynn says he is approached on a regular basis about works he owns, such as his Tahitian Gauguin, Bathers (1902), for which he reportedly paid close to $35 million, and van Gogh’s Peasant Woman Against a Background of Wheat (1890), for which he paid $47.5 million.