Edition: U.S. / Global


By Carol Vogel
Published: November 29, 2002

The Americans, At Lower Prices

American collectors and dealers were anticipating a Christie's catalog of ''Important American Paintings From a Distinguished Private Collection'' long before it went in the mail. While the auction house did not put the seller's name on the catalog, everybody in the field knew the art was being sold by Halsey Minor, the founder of CNET Networks, a computer and technology Web site. He had been the biggest buyer of American modernist paintings for four years, snapping up works by masters like Winslow Homer and Andrew Wyeth, Marsden Hartley and Stuart Davis at top dollar, and buying everything through the Gerald Peters Gallery in Manhattan.

Two years ago Sotheby's lent Mr. Minor $16 million, using his art collection as collateral, said American painting experts and auction house officials speaking on condition of anonymity. Now, to raise money to start another media company, Mr. Minor is selling the bulk of his collection for prices far lower than he paid.

According to Uniform Commercial Code filings, Mr. Minor stands to lose about $13 million on the Christie's sale alone, scheduled for Thursday. And experts speculate that he has already lost $10 million on paintings the Gerald Peters Gallery recently sold privately, including works by Hopper and Hartley.

''He bought at the top of the market when there was a lot of competition,'' Gerald Peters said when asked about the discrepancy between the prices Mr. Minor paid him and the drastically lower estimates Christie's has placed on the works it is auctioning. ''Now he's selling at a time when there is a correction in the market.''

Mr. Minor is also out $1 million that he has had to pay Sotheby's because he chose to sell his collection through Christie's. As part of his arrangement with Sotheby's -- a clause that is common in Sotheby's loan agreements -- he would have to pay Sotheby's a fee if he sold his art anywhere else.

Mr. Minor declined to discuss his specific financial arrangements with Sotheby's. He also would not discuss the terms Christie's has given him, which include a guarantee -- an undisclosed minimum price regardless of the outcome of the sale -- that experts say is $12 million, above Christie's low estimate of $10.8 million.

''I like art, but I've always looked at it as an investment,'' Mr. Minor said in a recent telephone interview. ''When the CNET stock was at $35 to $55 a share, I decided to buy physical assets like art and real estate. Now the stock is at $3.50. I wish the art was worth the same as it was when I paid for it, but I still think I came out ahead. When I look at people who kept all their money in the market, I thank my lucky stars.''

Mr. Minor said it was difficult to choose between Sotheby's and Christie's because both companies had given him impressive proposals. He said he had decided on Christie's because he had had ''good experience both buying and selling from them'' and he had not ''either bought or sold through Sotheby's.''

Eric Widing, head of Christie's American paintings department, said he was ''delighted to guarantee this kind of property'' even though he was aware that Mr. Peters had been trying to sell the 14 paintings included in Christie's sale on Thursday.

Among the top offerings are ''Eggbeater No. 4,'' a 1928 still life by Davis. Mr. Minor paid $1.75 million, according to the Uniform Commercial Code filing. Christie's estimate is $500,000 to $700,000. Another top painting is ''Mid-Manhattan II'' (1932), by John Marin. Mr. Minor bought the cityscape for $2.5 million, according to the U.C.C. filing. Christie's expects it to fetch $700,000 to $900,000.

A Trio Sans-Pareil

When an encyclopedic museum like the Metropolitan announces recent acquisitions, the list invariably covers a broad sweep of times and cultures. This week the museum singled out three works it has purchased for its permanent collection. Philippe de Montebello, the Met's director, called them all masterpieces.

Topping the list is a 14th-century crucifixion scene in tempera and gold leaf on wood by the Italian master Pietro Lorenzetti. Keith Christiansen, a curator of European paintings at the Met, said he first saw the painting 12 years ago at the Wildenstein Gallery in Manhattan, but at the time it was not for sale. It was so extraordinary, he said, that he asked for right of first refusal if it ever came on the market. When it did, he jumped.

''The Met has one of the largest collections of Sienese paintings, but most are bits and pieces of altars,'' Mr. Christiansen said. ''What it didn't have is a great, independent panel.''

Finding a gold-ground painting of this kind in pristine condition is nearly impossible, experts say. The panel will take its place among other early Italian works at the Met, including Giotto's ''Adoration of the Magi,'' Botticelli's ''Last Communion of St. Jerome'' and Mantegna's ''Adoration of the Shepherds.''

The second acquisition is a bust of the mythological figure Marsyas by the late-Baroque sculptor Balthazar Permoser, believed to have been made in Rome between 1680 and 1685. ''It's one of those pieces that stop you in your tracks, it's so strong,'' said Ian Wardropper, the Met's curator in charge of European sculpture and decorative arts. He said the piece came from a private collection in Florence.

Depicting the satyr during his flaying by Apollo, the sculpture has a tortured, screaming face and wild hair. The piece helps strengthen the museum's holdings in German Baroque sculpture, Mr. Wardropper said.

The third acquisition is a set of three late 14th-century handscrolls from Japan illustrating the ''Tale for the Long Autumn Night.'' The Met bought the set from the Idemitsu Corporation's museum in Tokyo. ''Records show it was in the imperial collection until the 17th century,'' said Miyeko Murase, the Met's special consultant for Japanese art. ''It's very old and very rare. Most were destroyed or lost.''

The scrolls, which tell the love story between an old monk and a young novice, is an example of a theme popular in Japan from the late 14th through the 16th century. ''Until now the Met didn't have anything like this,'' Ms. Murase said.

Photo: Met purchase: A bust of Marsyas, circa 1680-85, by Balthazar Permoser. (Metropolitan Museum of Art)