Masterworks by René Magritte, Pablo Picasso, Jean-Michel Basquiat & Cecily Brown Unveiled in Asia for the First Time
From The Collection of Mo Ostin, Legendary Music Executive Responsible for Nurturing Many of the Greatest Musicians:
Frank Sinatra, Jimi Hendrix, The Eagles, Prince, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Many More
A group of long-unseen masterworks by René Magritte, Pablo Picasso, Jean-Michel Basquiat & Cecily Brown are set to go on public view for the first ever time in Asia this week. Together, these exceptional works shine a fascinating light on the lifelong private passion of Mo Ostin - the legendary music executive who, over the course of his long career, had a transformative impact on music industry, quickly identifying great talent, and nurturing and developing the careers of many of the greatest musicians of recent times, including Jimi Hendrix, Fleetwood Mac, Rod Stewart, Prince and Red Hot Chili Peppers, to name a few.
In parallel with his extraordinary career, Ostin also harbored a deep, more private love for the visual artists, acquiring – over the course of some fifty years – a number of magnificent artworks which, like the music he nurtured, were all best in kind. This May, at Sotheby's in New York, thirty-three artworks from Mo Ostin's collection will emerge onto the market. Most have not been seen in public in decades; barely any have appeared at auction before. Ranging in date from 1915 to 2019, Ostin's collection spans a full spectrum of artists: from René Magritte, Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse to Willem de Kooning, Jasper Johns, Joan Mitchel, Cy Twombly, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Cecily Brown.
A number of leading works from the collection will now be displayed in a two-day special preview (from 24-26 April) at Sotheby's Hong Kong. They includeRené Magritte's L'Empire des lumières (est. $35-55 million), from 1951, is among the most iconic works of Modern Art in private hands. Acquired by Ostin in 1979, and not seen in public since, the painting brings together the effects of day and night into one irresistibly striking image: a definitive image of Surrealism, and a timeless masterpiece. The painting belongs to a group of seventeen oils of the same title; many of which hang in leading public institutions.
Not seen in public for over thirty years, another masterpiece by Magritte, Le Domaine d'Arnheim of 1949, (est. $15 – 25 million), shares its name with a short story by Edgar Allen Poe, one of the artist's favorite authors. Just as Poe did in words, here Magritte seeks to capture the "supreme majesty and dignity" of the mountainous landscape of the story's title.
Jean-Michel Basquiat's large-scale Moon View from 1984 (est. $7-10 million), once held in the collection of The Broad Art Foundation, Los Angeles, is a standout example of Basquiat's signature artistic practice. With his own unique symbolic lexicon, Basquiat here synthesizes a full range of influences, from street culture, metaphysics, advertising and theology, to hieroglyphs, art history, and his own Puerto Rican and Haitian heritage.
Pablo Picasso's monumental Paysage (est. $7-10 million), acquired by Ostin over two decades ago, and formerly in the collection of Maya Picasso, is a rare example of a landscape within the artist's prolific oeuvre. Executed in 1965, the painting depicts the village of Mougins in the South of France, where Picasso settled with his last wife Jacqueline.
Acquired by Ostin just one year after it was painted, Cecily Brown's 2015 Free Games for May (est. $3/5 million) brings together the influences of music, art history and culture. Full of energy, the painting takes its title from Pink Floyd's iconic 1967 rock concert "Games for May."
