French actor Alain Delon will auction more than 80 works of art from his private collection in June, media reported Tuesday.
Estimated at four to five million euros, the 87-year-old Delon’s art collection includes works by Eugène Delacroix, Luigi Veronese and other classics.
These works will be shown in New York, Hong Kong, Geneva, London and Paris before they go up for auction on June 22.
“I bought the first painting right in 1964 in London. Over the years I bought more paintings, portraits and sculptures that moved me, spoke to me and even sometimes comforted me,” the actor declared in the catalog for the Bonhams Conette de Saint Cyr auction house in Paris.
“These works have accompanied me for many years and have been a part of my life.”
Among these works is an oil painting by Raoul Diffie worth 600,000 to 800,000 euros and a Delacroix portrait from 1825, which is worth up to 600,000 euros.
Delon sold a large collection of contemporary art paintings in 2007, saying he did not like the idea of posthumous auctions.
“Some people buy cars, some visit prostitutes – I prefer portraits. I buy for passion, never for investment,” Delon said at the time.
Delon has also recently disposed of other parts of his property, selling his wine, watch and gun collections in 2016.
