An auctioneer's lot: triumphs and disasters at Christie's

Abstract

Lord Hindlip presided over London's auction house Christie's during a time of great excitement in the art world. The 1960s, 70s and early 80s saw the wholesale denuding of country houses and ransacking of attics right across the country - yielding genuine treasures and fakes (both cunning and clumsy) in equal measure. Both memoir and art book, 'Triumphs and Disasters' recounts Lord Hindlip's career through the major works of art that have passed through his hands over the last fifty years. His story charts such extraordinary highs as the sale of Van Gogh's Sunflowers for a then world-record sum, as well as the often hilarious lows, including a wild goose chase across the badlands of rural America which led him to a gun-toting recluse and a cherished pile of tat masquerading as Old Master paintings. This lavishly produced book is generously illustrated with photographs of all the works of art that came to define Lord Hindlip's tenure as chairman of Christie's.