Jewish art collector unveils iconic photographs up for auction in Paris

Iconic photographs belonging to the Jewish philanthropist and New-York based art collector Leon Constantiner will be up for auction in Paris.

The 92 images, which can be viewed from June 15 to 19 at Christie’s, include shots of Marilyn Monroe, prints by the Vogue photographer Irving Penn and some of Helmut Newton’s signature images.

The collection features the iconic shot by Burt Glinn of Andy Warhol and Edie Sedgwick climbing out of a man-hole in New York, estimated at £4,425.

Other highlights include a photograph of  supermodels Cindy Crawford, Helena Christensen, Claudia Schiffer, and Naomi Campbell, estimated at up to £88,500.

Also represented are emotive works by young Israeli photographers, such as Barry Frydlender, Naomi Leshem (pictured below), Sharon Ya’ari, Adi Nes and Ori Gersht.

Elodie Morel, Christie’s Director of Photographs in Europe, said: “It is a great honour to present the Leon Constantiner collection in Paris, the international capital of photography, and also the city of fashion and elegance.

“For the first time in Paris, we propose an exceptional collection of images that have become icons, works of art that reflect the creativity of the greatest photographers of the 20th century, who achieved prominence through the greatly increased diffusion of sophisticated magazines.”