A long-obscured portrait by Austrian expressionist Gustav Klimt, which was recently rediscovered just about a century later, has fetched a hammer price of $32 Million (€30 million) at a Vienna sale organized by the Im Kinsky auction house.
The piece itself went to an anonymous Hong Kong buyer, who placed their bid via Hong Kong advisory firm Patti Wong & Associates.
Dubbed the "Portrait of Fräulein Lieser" (1917), the painting was initially estimated to sell around $32 million to $55 million (€30 million to €50 million), putting the final selling price at the low end of the estimate.
Either way, the sale is a record-breaking affair for Im Kinsky, boasting the highest ever achieved among all other Austria-based auction houses and a stark increase from Im Kinsky's previous highest-ever sold artwork: a $6.1 million Egon Schiele painting.
About the Provenance of Gustav Klimt's 'Portrait of Fräulein Lieser'
In a press release by the auction house, in-house Klimt expert Claudia Mörth-Gasser said: "We are really happy with the result, but not surprised really, because it reflects international standards."
"Having sold top lots from European Art for the past three decades, we have great expertise in these kinds of sales," she continued.
Im Kinsky also wrote that the "provenience and story" of the piece was thoroughly researched and corroborated by cross-referencing its background to historical pieces of evidence, addressing the skepticism around the acquisition of the piece.
In particular, the auction house has invested special care in filling up the painting's gaps of history, as it was last seen in the Austrian National Library in 1925 via a photograph. Since then and until the 1960s, the Klimt work's movements have been obscured.
This raises questions about whether the work has been improperly acquired during the Nazi regime before it got into the hands of the current seller's family.
In addressing these concerns, Im Kinsky Managing Directors Michael Kovacek and Ernst Ploil said in the release: "We have used our special experience, gained in years of solving problems regarding 'looted art.'"
"And also, we know how to act when faced with matters of critical provenience," they continued. "We are therefore not only thrilled by the successful auction but equally by the fair and equitable solution reached, according to the Washington principles, in the interest of all engaged parties."
