Artworks owned by one of Ireland’s boom-time developers are to be sold off by renowned auction house Christie’s to repay some of his debts.
Financier Derek Quinlan, now based in Switzerland, has agreed to the sale of 14 paintings including an Andy Warhol Dollar Sign with a guide price of up to €439,000.
A second ironically titled piece in the sale is 'Man Doing Accounts' by Jack Butler Yeats.
A spokesman for Christie’s said the works had been put up for auction by the National Asset Management Agency (Nama).
“It’s quite interesting offering pieces from Nama. We did a sale from Lehman’s bank and it was a fantastic sale – it had great results. It can offer an element of extra interest.
“There’s something to be read into the artwork of the 20th century – whatever meaning he meant, or whatever else he was saying, I’m sure Warhol would find something amusing in that.”
The collection is worth about €2.2m at the top end of guide prices, Christie’s said.
The catalogue reads like a who’s who of the Irish artworld past and present who sold for record prices at the height of the boom including Jack B Yeats, Louis le Brocquy, Roderic O’Connor and Paul Henry.
Mr Quinlan, a former tax expert in the Revenue, acquired a large art collection over the last 15 years, and although the value of some pieces may have fallen in the economic crash, Christie’s is confident of big interest.
“They are all well established artists and well recognised,” a spokesman said. “It’s a good cross-section of 20th century art.”
Christie’s will auction three paintings in New York and the other 11 in London in two separate sales on November 9 and 17.
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