Red Easel

Monet Painting Fetches $80 million at London Auction

************

By EMILY RISTOW

Associated Press Writer

(Courtesy of the Charlotte Observer, June 25, 2008: www.charlotte.com)

LONDON --

A water lily painting by Claude Monet sold for more than $80 million Tuesday, breaking the auction record for the French impressionist artist, Christie's said.

"Le bassin aux nympheas," or "Water Lily Pond," which sold for $80,451,178, was part of a four-work collection of water lily paintings that Monet put up for sale during his lifetime.

The four large-scale paintings of Monet's water lily garden were signed and dated by the artist in 1919. One of the other paintings is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, while another was sold at auction in 1992 for $12.1 million and is in a private collection. The final painting in the series was cut into two before World War II.

"After a thrilling bidding battle between a number of clients in the room and on the telephones, the painting eventually sold to an anonymous collector for 41 million (British pounds), setting a new world record price for the artist at auction," said Olivier Camu, Christie's director of impressionist art.

The previous record for a Monet work was set in May when "Le Pont du chemin de fer a Argenteuil" sold for $41.4 million.

The painting sold Tuesday was purchased in a 1971 New York auction for $320,000. It has not been publicly exhibited since.

The bold brushstrokes in the painting are characteristic of Monet's later works, especially his "Grandes decorations," a 22-panel work of water lily paintings that was installed in Musee de l'Orangerie in Paris five months after Monet's death in 1926.

Monet created his water garden in Giverny, France by rerouting a river. He selected different hybrids of water lilies in an effort to get as many different colored flowers as possible, deliberately creating the garden as a motif for his paintings.

Tuesday's auction begins a week of major modern-art sales at Christie's and its rival Sotheby's, as the international market continues to set records despite global economic troubles.

The Christie's auction also features a rare pastel work by French impressionist Edgar Degas showing two ballet dancers. It is expected to fetch $8 million to $12 million.

Tim Russert

We are deeply saddened by the death of Tim Russert.  I have thoroughly enjoyed his journalism and integrity for reporting the news and talking about the important issues.  His voice as host to this year's primary debate was fantastic.  He asked the right questions and never let anyone off the hook.  He was direct and we always knew that he had done his homework. 

I've even cried some tears, shocked that this man who appeared so healthy, so strong, so alive, could so suddenly drop dead of a massive heart attack. 

Now a bit of trivia, In 2000, Tim Russert scribbled "Florida, Florida, Florida" on his little dry-erase board with red marker memorably summing up the outcome of the presidential election hinging on Florida.  His little whiteboard is preserved in a museum in Washington D.C.

I just thought you would enjoy knowing that his scribbles are worth a heck of a lot of money.

The following information is courtesy of Wikipedia:

On the afternoon of June 13, 2008, Russert collapsed at the offices of WRC-TV, which houses the Washington, D.C. bureau of NBC News where he was the Bureau Chief, while recording voiceovers for the Sunday edition of Meet the Press. Despite immediate attempts at resuscitation by EMS and transportation to Sibley Memorial Hospital, Russert never regained consciousness and was pronounced dead a short time later. News of his death was reported live on NBC, CNBC, and MSNBC by Tom Brokaw.  He had just returned from a family vacation in Italy, where he went to celebrate his son's graduation from Boston College.  While his wife and son remained in Italy, Russert returned to prepare for his Sunday television show.

An autopsy, performed on the day of his death, determined that his history of diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease lead to sudden cardiac death. The precise cause of death was a cardiac arrhythmia caused by coronary thrombosis of the left anterior descending artery, often called a widow maker in the medical field.  On the special reports program, Russert's friend Dr. Nancy Newmann stated that the autopsy showed coronary artery disease in the left anterior descending artery, and a fresh blood clot was visible on one of these plaques. This was most certainly the cause of Russert's sudden death.

On the evening of his death, the entire, nearly commercial-free half hour of NBC Nightly News was dedicated to Russert's memory, featuring previous news segments with Russert and interviews with some of Russert's colleagues. Dateline NBC also served as a memorial for Russert, by highlighting the heights of both his early life and political and journalistic career in television. No other news was covered in the broadcast. The entire episode of Dateline also was a tribute to Russert.

On NBC Nightly News, tributes to the man included those by Obama, McCain, Ethyl Kennedy, Bob Schieffer, Bob Woodward, and others.

*************

I believe it helps to fully understand why a man that appeared so full of health and vitality could tragically and so suddenly leave us. 

Our prayers and thoughts are with his family, friends, and collegues during this terribly difficult time.  Tim will be deeply missed by all of us and remembered for a lifetime.

Susan

Inspired Vision

Inspired Vision
Author: Sarah E. Schultz

Inspired Vision combines intriguing photography with uplifting poetry to soothe and restore the heart and soul, giving renewed hope for the present and for the future.

I just finished reading Inspired Vision and I became completely engaged in the reading of this beautiful poetry and the photography that sets the stage for each passage.  The author has intermingled her gift of poetry and photography into a book that makes for a perfect nighttime reading to ease the stresses of the day.  I highly recommend this book. 

My favorite poem from the book reads:

Each Stage of our Lives...

The most significant
Things we acquire
From each stage of our lives
Are the
Memories we collect
The
Lessons we learn
And the
Awareness that we have
Influenced people's lives.

- Sarah Schultz

Note: Sarah's husband, Dan Schultz, is a professional artist and a member of Red Easel.  We are proud to have such talent in our midst.

*****

- Susan Vaughn