New York — Christie’s is honored to announce Property from The Collection of Herbert Kasper will be sold across various Fall sales and a portion of the proceeds will benefit charity. 35 Old Master drawings from his celebrated collection will be sold in a dedicated live sale, Always in Style: Old Master Drawings from the Collection of Herbert Kasper on 14 October. Additional works will be offered across the Collector sale,  Antiquities, Photographs and Old Master Paintings in October, as well as the 20^th Century Art Evening Sale and Post-War and Contemporary Art Day sale in November, and the Design sale in December. With 129 lots, the collection is expected to exceed $11,500,000.

Herbert Kasper, known to everyone simply as Kasper, was a leading figure in the world of fashion and an influential tastemaker in New York. Born in New York City in 1926, Kasper studied English and advertising at New York University before serving in the US Army during the Second World War. He later studied in Paris, at L’École de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, earning him stints at Christian Dior and Marcel Rochas. He started out as a milliner but soon moved into designing dresses, spending most of his career working for Leslie Fay Inc. He was one of the youngest recipients of the prestigious Coty award, eventually winning it three times throughout his career. Kasper began collecting in the 1950s while working in Paris and amassed an exceptional collection over the next 50 years that spanned across centuries and artistic movements.

Jennifer Wright, Vice President, Chairman’s Office, Christie’s New York, commented “Kasper’s collection really captures his essence as a man with boundless curiosity and sophisticated taste. He was not afraid to push boundaries and delve into entirely new fields even after many decades of collecting – whether it be Mannerist drawings or contemporary photography. He will also be remembered for his generosity – often hosting friends and fellow collectors at his apartment, and through his affiliations with the Morgan Library and Museum, and George Jackson Academy.”

Stijn Alsteens, International Head of Department, Old Master Drawings, remarks, “As in the other areas in which Kasper collected, his Old Master Drawings are remarkable for the focus on a particular period and subject-matter – and for their quality. Mostly sixteenth-century figure studies, they nonetheless surprise by the variety of schools, techniques, styles and functions they represent. They are a testament to the collector’s taste, but also to the elegance, intelligence, purposefulness and curiosity that has animated Kasper throughout his life.”

Kasper’s collection was perhaps best known for its Old Master drawings, particularly Mannerist works from the 16^th and 17^th centuries, some of which have already been gifted to the Morgan Library & Museum in New York, where he was a long-time trustee. The dedicated sale Always in Style: Old Master Drawings from the Collection of Herbert Kasper on 14 October features exceptional works by the most important masters of the late Renaissance such as Parmigianino, Giulio Romano, Paolo Veronese, and Giorgio Vasari.  Numerous depictions of the human form are represented, including the breathtaking An Angel in Flight by Giuseppe Cesare, portraits from revered Mannerists Baccio Bandinelli and Taddeo Zuccaro, unpublished anatomical studies from Sir Peter Paul Rubens, prized watercolor paintings from the 16^th century, and Hendrick Goltzius’ prized drawing of a scene from Ovid’s Metamorphoses.

Kasper’s collection also included a significant holding of contemporary art, many reflecting his interest and curiosity in cultural momentsas well as personal relationships with curators, artists and dealers. Highlights comprise Pablo Picasso’s, Verre et bouteille sur une table and Juan Gris’, Le moulin à café, to be sold in the 20^th Century Evening Sale. The Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale includes Jean-Michel Basquiat’s portrait of artist, critic and bon vivant, titled Réne Ricard; Ed Ruscha’s Clock, a text work which experiments with gunpowder as a graphic medium, and Untitled by Helen Frankenthaler inscribed with a birthday message for Herbert Kasper, a heartfelt testament to their friendship that grew over the years.

Ever open to new ideas, while in Vienna in 2003, Kasper chanced upon a show of photographs of graffiti, which prompted him to start collecting in the field. Examples included Man Ray’s photograph of a Max Ernst drawing in the sand and Brassaï’s The Imp, Belleville, Paris (around 1952). His photography collection was more expansive than other aspects of his collection and also included the likes of Hiroshi Sugimoto, Helen Levitt, Adam Fuss and Vik Muniz.