At Sotheby’s, Risk-Taking Left a $180 Million van Gogh in the Lurch

Art & Design|At Sotheby’s, Risk-Taking Left a $180 Million van Gogh in the Lurch

Some of the richest people in the world dined at Sotheby’s on Friday evening, on beef and mashed potatoes. Their host, the auction house’s chief executive, Charles Stewart, gave a rousing speech about the more than $1 billion worth of artworks that he was planning to sell this week.

What he didn’t say to a room that included billionaires like Linda Macklowe, Hubert Neumann and Mitchell Morgan was that the week’s marquee lot, a dreamy 1890 van Gogh landscape worth around $180 million, was at that very moment in dispute.

Earlier that day, Jewish heirs of the collector who previously owned the painting, “Châtaigniers en Fleurs (Blossoming Chestnut Trees),” had requested that Sotheby’s withdraw the lot, due to be auctioned on Wednesday, asserting that it was sold under duress in 1936 because of Nazi-era persecution.

Legal representatives from Sotheby’s and the heirs are expected to meet in Manhattan on Monday to discuss a potential settlement.

Industry experts said that questions about the van Gogh’s provenance were already being spoken about ahead of the sale, but a public dispute could scare away potential buyers, who would be anxious to know how Sotheby’s had let a painting with such a troubled history reach the salesroom.

“It’s a nightmare for Sotheby’s. It’s a nightmare for the owners. It’s a nightmare for the buyers,” said Philip Hoffman, an art adviser who previously worked as an executive in the auction world.