Alberto Giacometti (1901-1966) – Diego en chemise écossaise
A compelling portrait by Alberto Giacometti (1901-1966) of his brother Diego will lead Christie’s sale of Impressionist and Modern Art in New York on November 5. Diego en chemise écossaise, which is estimated at $30—50 million, showcases the graphic drama and economy of representation that would become hallmarks of Giacometti’s painting. The work has been in a private collection for over two decades and has never appeared at auction.
Andreas Rumbler, Deputy Chairman of the Impressionist and Modern Art department and Head of Evening Sale, at Christie’s New York commented: “Although Diego was Alberto Giacometti’s most frequent sitter—serving almost as an alter ego for the artist—never before did he depict him with quite the same energy or fervor as he did in this work. The interplay of multiple dimensions and color renders his subject as an object in space, an “everyman” without unique qualities, an emblem of humanity. With this masterpiece, Alberto Giacometti establishes himself as one of the greatest portrait painters of the 20th Century, paving the way for the likes of Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud.”
UPDATE: There were no bids for the work which was guaranteed by a third party before the sale. The guarantor paid $32.6 million, a record for a Giacometti painting.