Poland cements itself as art market hotspot with Rubens portrait set to go for staggering 24mln PLN
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- 07 Feb 2022
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Poland’s reputation as an art market hotspot has been given a further boost with news that Rubens’ 17th-century Portrait of a Lady is to go under the hammer in Warsaw.
With a guide price of PLN 18-24 million, experts say the piece could be the most expensive artwork ever sold in Poland.
Auction house chief Juliusz Windorbski said: “Portraits by the Flemish painter are extremely rare in Europe, while in Poland a work of art of such enormous historical, artistic and investment value has never before been exhibited.”
Tomasz Dziewicki, head of the Old Art department at the auction house added that the appearance of such a rare and expensive painting as Portrait of a Lady is “phenomenal” and confirms the growing importance of Poland on the European art market.
He said: “The appearance of such a large and artistically beautiful portrait by Rubens is an extraordinary event, all the more so when you consider its origins.”
Its pre-auction display in the capital's DESA Unicum is the first time since 1965 that the Baroque canvas has been shown in public.
Painted around 1620-25, Portrait of a Lady, has been held for over four centuries in the prestigious collections of European aristocrats, financiers and well-known collectors.
One of the first owners of the canvas was Sir Peter Lely, a leading painter in the British Isles at that time, an art collector and a friend of Rubens. Read More…
