How Well-Chosen Art Can Enhance a Home
/SOURCE: Sotheby’s
With high art maximizing the value of high-end residences, it might be time to become a collector
The relationship between high art and noteworthy buildings is as old as civilization itself: think of the celebrated sculptures that once adorned the exterior of the Parthenon in Athens, or Michelangelo’s magnificent ceiling frescoes for the Sistine Chapel in Rome. And when it comes to residential properties, nothing enhances an extraordinary home like a carefully crafted art collection. Virtually every cover story in Architectural Digest illustrates this point: important paintings hanging on the walls of a Park Avenue apartment or a French Riviera mansion signify beauty, taste, and style, elevating the perceived value of a home.
Art’s power to enhance an extraordinary residence has been proven again and again over decades of high-profile sales, in which Sotheby’s International Realty offered the homes of collectors whose art was also brought to auction through Sotheby’s.
A few cases in point: in 2013, the Modern art collection of Alex and Elisabeth Lewyt, headlined by a rare Paul Cézanne still-life, sold for a total of US$99 million across 23 auctions in New York and Paris, far above the presale estimate. Likewise, their New York townhouse, sold by Meredyth Hull Smith, senior global real estate advisor and associate broker, Sotheby’s International Realty—East Side Manhattan Brokerage, achieved US$8 million, while their Sands Point Long Island estate, represented by Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty went for US$17 million.
That same year, Jack Cotton Jr, real estate advisor, Sotheby’s International Realty—Osterville Brokerage, sold Rachel Lambert “Bunny” Mellon’s Cape Cod estate for a record US$19.5 million. Mellon was one of the greatest art collectors and philanthropists in the U.S., and a sale of “masterworks” from her collection at Sotheby’s created a sensation in November 2014, when the single-owner auction flew past its estimate to bring in a total of US$159 million, while her jewelry achieved US$45 million, more than doubling expectations.
We continue to see the marriage of art and real estate in today’s homes. Michael Carucci, executive vice president, Gibson Sotheby’s International Realty in Boston, Massachusetts, credits “the fusion of fine art and luxury real estate” as central to his success in selling some of the most valuable properties in New England. “It is very typical for owners of homes worth US$10 million and higher to be collectors,” Carucci says.
He often invites artists to show their work in properties he is representing, transforming residences into galleries. In 2020, he commissioned celebrated Boston artist Giovanni Decunto to create a suite of paintings for One Dalton Four Seasons Private Residences; the eventual purchaser of the US$7.2 million apartment fell in love with the paintings and bought them as well. Carucci is currently offering a US$10.9 million Boston penthouse at 1 Franklin Street; its owner is a well-known mega-collector, which has already sparked high buyer interest.
Like Carucci, Tania Toubba, real estate advisor, Sotheby’s International Realty—San Francisco Brokerage, recognizes the uncanny power of art to sell a home. “There is no better way to create environments that resonate with discerning buyers than to showcase a carefully curated art collection,” says Toubba. She recently sold a sensational 8,000 square foot oceanfront residence in the Sea Cliff neighborhood of San Francisco, California, for its full asking price of US$26 million.
To show the house to its best advantage, she brought in artist Paul Rusconi to curate a collection of paintings, sculptures, and works on paper by blue chip masters including Robert Rauschenberg, Elaine de Kooning, John Chamberlain, and Damien Hirst. The launch event was treated like a gallery opening, attracting top-tier brokers, architects, designers, and builders. “It was a bold move that paid off,” says Toubba. “Our guests were blown away. The profound reaction to the installation affirmed that individuals develop a deeper emotional connection to a property when showcased with art.”
As with real estate, the fine art market experiences ups and downs. Education is key to understanding the market, and there are now more resources than ever before to judge its value. But regardless of its investment potential, great art has an uncanny ability to elevate a home—and add immeasurable pleasure to the lives of its occupants.
SOURCE: Sotheby’s
