This November, Bonhams will host a sale of works from the collection of the late actor Gene Hackman, who died in February.
Hackman, as ARTnews reported at the time of his death, was a major arts patron in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he lived, and a painter in his own right. He served as a board member of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, spoke at its opening, and narrated a documentary about the artist.
Hackman was also, unsurprisingly, an art collector, though little has been reported to date about what works were in the collection of him and his wife, classical musician Betsy Arakawa, who also died in February.
The Bonhams auction—spread across one live and two online sales—is fascinating in that regard. The sale spans fine art, personal artworks, and cinematic memorabilia, including pieces by Milton Avery, Auguste Rodin, and Richard Diebenkorn.
The live sale, titled “Gene Hackman: A Life in Art, Part I,” will be held on November 19 in New York, during the marquee fall auctions. Five lots have been announced so far, the highest-value of which is the 1957 painting Figure on the Jetty by Avery, which carries an estimate of $500,000 to $700,000. Hackman bought it at Sotheby’s New York in 1997 for $244,500. The Diebenkorn, the 1986 color etching Green, carries an estimate of $300,000 to $500,000.
The online auctions run in two parts—Part II from November 8 to 21, and Part III from November 25 to December 4. On offer are two of Hackman’s Golden Globes, for his performances in The Royal Tenenbaums and Unforgiven, as well as a still life painting by the actor carrying a modest estimate of $1,000 to $1,500.
(It appears that Bonhams has yet to post all the lots on its website. A press release references a Rodin, carrying a $200,000 to $300,000 estimate, as well as additional lots of annotated books, scripts, posters, and other cinematic memorabilia that have yet to appear on the sale page.)
“Together, these sales offer an intimate portrait of Hackman’s private world and a rare opportunity for collectors to engage with his creative life,” Anna Hicks, Bonhams’s head of private and iconic collections, said in a statement. “Whether through the art, scripts, or personal objects, what emerges is more than a collection—it is a life lived with purpose, curiosity, and uncompromising vision.”
