Towns and Woods pick Warhol and Lichtenstein for Sotheby's October sale
New York Knicks star Karl-Anthony Towns and Jordyn Woods have hand-picked 10 artworks for Sotheby's next Contemporary Curated sale in New York.
The auction is set for 7 October in New York. Towns, a six-time NBA All-Star, and Woods selected the group as guest curators, according to Artnet.
Sotheby's, the auction house, launched Contemporary Curated in 2013. It is a twice-a-year sale that invites people from outside the art world to choose works from the season's consignments.
The Towns-Woods edition spans painting, sculpture and works on paper. Sotheby's said the pair brought their shared perspective as collectors to the task, with the selection exploring identity, perception and transformation, as reported by Artsy.
The prices are published as estimates, the low-to-high range the house expects before bidding starts. Andy Warhol's Flowers (1964) is estimated at US$2.5 million to US$3.5 million. Roy Lichtenstein's Green Head (1979) carries the same range.
Further down the list, George Condo's I Want My Brain Back (2020) is estimated at US$1 million to US$1.5 million. John Chamberlain's Untitled (1967) and Alma Thomas's Red Mums Display (1977) are each estimated at US$500,000 to US$700,000.
Two of the leading lots arrive with a noted backstory. The Warhol Flowers and the Chamberlain Untitled come from the collection of the late architect Robert A.M. Stern. Provenance, the documented chain of ownership, is information many buyers check before they bid.
The 10 works will go under the hammer at Sotheby's Breuer building in New York in October. Towns and Woods visited Sotheby's in New York on 10 September ahead of the announcement, the house said.
Sotheby's describes Towns as an NBA superstar and Woods as an entrepreneur, creator, model and philanthropist. The announcement portrait of the pair was taken by photographer Rick Wenner, according to Sotheby's.
What makes this stand out is the crossover. Basketball fans know Towns from the court. Art followers know these artists from museum walls. Here the two lists meet.
No bids yet. The test comes on sale night, when each lot either finds a buyer within its estimate, climbs past it, or goes unsold.
