Old Masters Week in New York has seen yet another outstanding sale, as Claude Lorrain's A Wooded Landscape made a significant increase on estimate to lead Christie's Old Master and Early British Drawings and Watercolours auction.
 When Claude died, most of his drawings were still in his possession and were subequently compiled into 12 albums |
The January 31 sale saw Claude's landscape, which was executed in pen and brown ink, sell for $6.1m. The price represents a spectacular 666.3% increase on the $800,000 high estimate given prior to the sale.
Claude (1600-1682) was a French painter who spent most of his life in Italy, where he achieved great success after receiving commissions from the King of Spain and Pope Urban VIII. He is revered for his majestic landscapes, and is said to have inspired such luminaries in the field as JMW Turner and John Constable.
The present piece is one of his most accomplished pure landscape compositions, which at the time were not considered fit for serious painting. Executed at the height of his success, it was once part of the Wildenstein Album, which was acquired by the Wildenstein Gallery in 1960 and contained some of Claude's finest drawings.
Having been housed in one of the 12 albums compiled following the artist's death, A Wooded Landscape is in remarkable condition for its age. This, combined with an illustrious provenance that includes nobles such as Queen Christina of Sweden and Marchese Pompeo Azzolini, and which can be traced back almost to Claude's lifetime, account for the outstanding sale price.
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