Is that painting a Michael-angelo?
George’s collection of art by Damien Hirst and Andy Warhol to sell for £9m
HE will always be remembered for his unparalleled pop catalogue – but it looks like George Michael’s art collection is about to go down in history too.
The impressive and eclectic array of works owned by the late singer and former Wham! frontman has been unveiled – including 175 pieces that are being put up for auction.
Stand-out lots include Damien Hirst’s bizarre Saint Sebastian, Exquisite Pain – a bullock pierced with crossbow bolts in formaldehyde expected to fetch more than £1million. Simpler pieces, such as photographs of model Kate Moss taken by Sir Paul McCartney’s daughter Mary, are set to go for a slightly more affordable £1,500.
Michael once even commissioned his artist friend Tracey Emin to create a neon ‘George Loves Kenny’ sign for him and his then-partner Kenny Goss.
Both this work, expected to fetch £40,000 to £60,000, and the Hirst piece speak volumes about the star’s passion for the so-called Young British Artists (YBAs) he admired for their ‘honesty about life, death and sex’, according to Texan art dealer Mr Goss.
Ahead of the auction, which began with an online sale of some items yesterday, Mr Goss, 60, told how Michael started collecting art after befriending many of the YBAs who shot to fame in the 1990s. In an interview on the Christie’s website, Mr Goss, who was Michael’s partner for 15 years from 1996 and set up the Goss-Michael Foundation charity with him in 2007 to showcase the work of British artists in the US, said: ‘The art collection was part of him. The YBAs’ openness and honesty about life, death and sex were a huge part of his world.
‘The reason George related to the YBAs was they were not afraid to speak their minds and say what they thought.’
Auctioneer Christie’s estimates the collection could fetch nearly £9million in total. It is being sold by the executors of Michael’s will and trustees appointed by him, with the proceeds going to ‘philanthropic causes’. Michael, who racked up 100million album sales and had a reported £105million fortune, died aged 53 on Christmas Day 2016. His will has yet to be published.
Other lots include a silver leaf and ink piece by Andy Warhol, called Child With Kite, which is expected to fetch at least £40,000.
Another striking work is a computerised portrait of Michael by Sir Michael Craig-Martin, which keeps changing colour.
The online auction continues until March 15, with the priciest pieces due to go under the hammer in London on March 14.
‘Honesty about life, death and sex’