Portrait attributed to Rubens could break records in Poland
Peter Paul Rubens - Portrait of a Lady - 1620-25
On 17 March 2022, Desa Unicum will auction in Warsaw a Portrait of a Lady attributed to Peter Paul Rubens, which could become the most expensive painting ever auctioned in Poland.
Image: Peter Paul Rubens, “Portrait of a Lady”, circa 1620-1625. Oil on canvas, 98 x 73.8 cm
Witha a presale estimate of between 18 and 24 million złoty (between $4.5 million and $5.5 million), Desa Unicum has announced that the painting "may become the most expensive work of art ever sold in Poland". Although this does not seem strictly correct (remember the sale -in reality, a partial donation by the Czartoryski Foundation- of Leonardo da Vinci's Lady with an Ermine for 100 million euros some five years ago), it may prove to be a record for an auction in Poland, where the art market does not usually offer paintings by such renowned names as Peter Paul Rubens. And precisely this unusual fact, this presence of a Rubens in a market usually as absent of "blockbusters" as the Polish art market, raises some questions.
Firstly, Desa Unicum has announced that the work does not require an export licence, as it comes from a collection located outside the European Union (according to the published provenance, the work was in the United Kingdom from 2012 to 2018). Why then is this painting not being auctioned in London, still the art market capital for old master paintings, as seems natural? Less than two years ago, Sotheby's auctioned in London another Portrait of a Lady attributed to Rubens for just over £3 million, a hopeful precedent for the future sale. And of course, it was also in London that five years ago Christie's auctioned Rubens' Lot and his Daughters for £45 million, one of the highest prices ever paid for an old master painting.
Another fundamental question is that of attribution. It is well known that Rubens, one of the most prolific painters in the history of European art, was assisted in the execution of several of his paintings by his workshop. Desa Unicum states in his presentation of the painting that the work was executed by Rubens "with the assistance of his workshop". The extent of the intervention of assistants is crucial in establishing the definitive value of the painting, which -according to the literature published by the auction house- is (or was) considered a workshop work by various specialists, including Michael Jaffé and Jan Kelch.
The painting, which according to the auction house has not been exhibited in public since 1965, will be offered at auction on 17 March. It remains to be seen whether the sale, together with the announced auction of the Gerlinger collection at Ketterer Kunst in Munich, will fulfil the expectations raised and give a boost to the European art market, which is usually bereft of "blockbusters" beyond the major auctions in London.

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