My Friend K in New York

K is my new "web friend" for lack of a better expression. Less than a month ago (I think) we started to exchange messages on MUA and she recently started to leave comments on this here blog. She lives in New York! Not only does she reside there but she knows how to enjoy what this glorious city has to offer. Arts and shopping! What else could a girl want? I don't know about you but for me it would be absolute Heaven!

So what did she do for me, my New York friend? She took pictures! Lots of great pictures!

Shopping at Bergdorf Goodman

Gorgeous!

Estée Lauder's exclusive Re-Nutriv line 

Yves St-Laurent makeup 

The new Aerin Essential Collection display

Dior 

Duane Reed

Where you can find several outstanding French skin care lines. Not as glamorous as high end stores but these products are of equal quality if not superior while being less expensive.

Among these you might want to have a closer look at Nuxe's Crème Fraîche, Rêve de Miel lip balm that comes in a little glass jar and the fabulous Huile Prodigieuse. Klorane's Blueberry eye makeup remover is a classic as are their shampoos.

100% Pure, Nuxe & Klorane

Liérac is a relatively new company for me and so I haven't tried any of their skin care but just love their all purpose oil called Huile Sensorielle aux Trois Fleurs Collection Blanche. Ma favorite so far. The fragrance is  soft, feminine and on me it lasts all day.

Liérac

Christie's

Just the name of this great auction house evokes glamour and wealth. Founded in 1766 by James Christie it has conducted some of the greatest auctions of the past 300 years. The Park Avenue salesroom which opened it's doors in 1977 has seen some beautiful collection auctioned off and so has the new American headquarters opened at 20 Rockefeller Plaza in April of 2000.

Some recent notable auctions

1997  A Charity gala auction of 79 Dresses from the Collection of Diana, Princess of Wales, are sold for a staggering $3,258,750 (£1,960,150) in Christie’s New York. The proceeds of the sale benefited the Royal Marsden Hospital Cancer Fund and AIDS Crisis Trust.

2000  The Personal Property of Marilyn Monroe goes under the hammer selling for over $13.4 million (£8.1 million). The highlight is the ‘Happy Birthday’ dress, worn by Marilyn on 19 May 1962 to sing to President John F. Kennedy, which realizes over $1.2 million, a world record for a woman’s costume and the third highest price for an item of celebrity memorabilia.

2011  The Elizabeth Taylor Collection of jewellery, fine art, fashion, decorative arts and memorabilia reaches $183.5m. It sets the new record for the most valuable jewellery single-owner collection sold at auction ($144m).

The Collection of Elisabeth Taylor, Christie's auction room

K did a fantastic job with her iPhone at Christie's! I just love to be able to see these pieces in a context other than a museum. Sadly, some will end up in private collections which means that these casual pictures may become some of the last we see of these works in a long time, actually we may not see them until they are up for auction again. This is the reason K goes to Christie's. To see and admire art that is temporarily available to the public. Of course some are purchased by museums but usually the most expensive pieces often find their way to either an Arab prince's living room or a Nouveau Riche's newly decorated office.

K took several great pictures and these below are my favorites.

Jeff Koons (b. 1955) Tulips,

mirror-polished stainless steel with transparent color coating 

80 x 180 x 205 in. (203.2 x 457.2 x 520.7 cm.) 

Executed in 1995-2004. This work is one of five unique versions. 

Price Realised, $33,682,500

Do Ho Suh (b.1962) Some/One, 

stainless steel, military dog tags, stainless steel structure, 

fiberglass resin, mirrored stainless steel sheets

Price Realized, $782,500

El Anatsui (b. 1944) Dzodze 

aluminum and copper wire 

86 x 136 in. (218.4 x 345.4 cm.) 

Executed in 2006.  

Price Realized, $722,500

This is the one that made my day! Roy Lichtenstsein. I love, love his work and K did a marvelous job in taking this picture. I enjoy the fact that it's slightly crooked. The colors are amazing and it's really fun to see floor.

Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997) 

Nude with Red Shirt 

signed and dated 'rf Lichtenstein '95' (on the reverse) 

oil and Magna on canvas 

77 x 65 in. (198.1 x 167.7 cm.) 

Painted in 1995. 

Price Realised, $28,082,500

This Lichtenstein was owned by a Distinguished Private Collector since 1995. Who purchased it? If it was by another Distinguished Private Collector, well, we may not see it again for several years.

*sniff*

On a final note, if you thought that Koons Tulips reminded you of balloons, well, you're kind of right!

K holding a little blue balloon dog in front of Tulips

Thank you Lovely K! xoxo H



To learn more about the history of Christie's:
http://www.christies.com/about/company/history.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christie's



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