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Paul Allen's Art Collection Tops $1 bn at Christie's

'The Conversation' by David Hockney, part of Paul Allen's art collection, is on display at Christie's Los Angeles on October 12, 2022 Frederic J. BROWN AFP
'The Conversation' by David Hockney, part of Paul Allen's art collection, is on display at Christie's Los Angeles on October 12, 2022 Frederic J. BROWN AFP
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Paul Allen's Art Collection Tops $1 bn at Christie's

'The Conversation' by David Hockney, part of Paul Allen's art collection, is on display at Christie's Los Angeles on October 12, 2022 Frederic J. BROWN AFP
'The Conversation' by David Hockney, part of Paul Allen's art collection, is on display at Christie's Los Angeles on October 12, 2022 Frederic J. BROWN AFP

Paintings and sculptures from the collection of late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen were auctioned off for a historic $1 billion Wednesday, Christie's auction house said, with records set for works by Van Gogh, Cezanne, Gauguin, Seurat and Klimt.

At the end of the night Wednesday, five paintings entered the exclusive club of works of art sold for more than $100 million at auction, the New York auction house said.

The most expensive piece of art of the evening, Georges Seurat's 1888 work "Les Poseuses, Ensemble (small version)", a renowned work of pointillism, fetched $149.24 million, including fees, Christie's said.

The auction house had announced that all the proceeds would be donated to charity, said AFP.

While only 60 of 150 lots were sold on Wednesday, with the rest to be auctioned off Thursday, the value of the collection has already surpassed the previous record for the Macklowe collection, named after a wealthy New York couple, which fetched $922 million at competitor Sotheby's earlier this spring.

The two-day sale in New York came as experts say the super wealthy are viewing art as a safe investment this year amid a tumultuous global economy and Russia's war in Ukraine.

Allen made his fortune with the establishment of the PC operating system with his better-known Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates in 1975.

He amassed a huge art collection which he used to lend to museums before his death in 2018 at the age of 65.

Allen left Microsoft in 1983, due to health problems and a deteriorating relationship with Gates, who remained in charge of the company until 2000.

Despite their strained friendship, Allen signed Gates's "Giving Pledge" campaign and all proceeds from the auction are to be donated to charitable causes.

At auction Wednesday, French painter Paul Cezanne’s "La Montagne Sainte-Victoire" fetched $137.8 million, almost double the artist’s auction record.

A work by Vincent Van Gogh, "Orchard with Cypresses," broke the Dutch artist's previous record, bringing in $117.2 million.

A painting from Paul Gauguin's Tahitian period, "Maternity II," brought $105.7 million.

Austrian painter Gustav Klimt's "Birch Forest" brought in $104.6 million.

Another 95 works from Allen's collection go on sale Thursday.

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Rescuers Try to Keep Dozens of Dolphins Away from Cape Cod Shallows after Mass Stranding

A trained volunteer attempts to herd stranded dolphins into deeper waters Friday, June 28, 2024, in Wellfleet, Mass. (Stacey Hedman/IFAW via AP)
A trained volunteer attempts to herd stranded dolphins into deeper waters Friday, June 28, 2024, in Wellfleet, Mass. (Stacey Hedman/IFAW via AP)
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Rescuers Try to Keep Dozens of Dolphins Away from Cape Cod Shallows after Mass Stranding

A trained volunteer attempts to herd stranded dolphins into deeper waters Friday, June 28, 2024, in Wellfleet, Mass. (Stacey Hedman/IFAW via AP)
A trained volunteer attempts to herd stranded dolphins into deeper waters Friday, June 28, 2024, in Wellfleet, Mass. (Stacey Hedman/IFAW via AP)

Animal rescuers were trying to keep dozens of dolphins away from shallow waters around Cape Cod on Saturday after 125 of the creatures stranded themselves a day earlier.
Teams in Massachusetts found one group of 10 Atlantic white-sided dolphins swimming in a dangerously shallow area at dawn on Saturday, and managed to herd them out into deeper water, said the International Fund for Animal Welfare.
Scouts also found a second group of 25 dolphins swimming close to the shore near Eastham, the organization said, with herding efforts there ongoing as the tide dropped throughout the morning.
Ten dolphins died during the stranding Friday at The Gut — or Great Island — in Wellfleet, at the Herring River.
The organization said it was the largest mass-stranding it had dealt with on the Cape during its 26-year history in the area, The Associated Press reported. The Gut is the site of frequent strandings, which experts believe is due in part to its hook-like shape and extreme tidal fluctuations.
Misty Niemeyer, the organization's stranding coordinator, said rescuers faced many challenges Friday including difficult mud conditions and the dolphins being spread out over a large area.
“It was a 12-hour exhausting response in the unrelenting sun, but the team was able to overcome the various challenges and give the dolphins their best chance at survival," Niemeyer said in a statement.
The team started out on foot, herding the creatures into deeper waters and then used three small boats equipped with underwater pingers, according to the organization.
Those helping with the rescue effort include more than 25 staff from the organization and 100 trained volunteers. The group also had the support of Whale and Dolphin Conservation, the Center for Coastal Studies, AmeriCorps of Cape Cod and the New England Aquarium.