Celebrity Auctions Paintings - 1Earth Antiques & Appraisals Magazine

ONCE BURNED, NEVER SHY

Egon Schiele, Mannlicher Akt, gelb
Egon Schiele's Mannlicher Akt, gelb
Barbra Streisand is offering up Egon Schiele's Mannlicher Akt, gelb at Christie's on May 9, 2000 with an estimate of $150,000 - $200,000. It's a lot of money, but not all that much for a decent Schiele nude. And it's a lot less than she could have gotten two years ago.

Back in early '98, Streisand put the painting on consignment with a New York gallery expecting a minimum net of around $275,000. But she demanded — and got — the painting back prematurely because the auction rooms beckoned with the possibility of a better price. She put the painting up for sale at Christie's in November 1998 with an estimate of $300,000 - $400,000. But unlike cases where people go bonkers over something once owned by a celebrity (a painting of Barbra's, for instance), the bidding didn't meet her minimum.

Now, it's back up for sale with an estimate lower than the offer she turned down two years ago and with an estimate of half of its previous estimate. It may turn out well for her in the end. But while bidding wars make headlines, little play is usually given to the time when there's an auction but no fever.