Van Gogh's drawing 'Sower in a Wheatfield with setting Sun' (July 1888) will be auctioned at Sotheby's New York on 18 November with an estimate of $8m-$10m. The work, which belonged to the late cosmetics heir and collector Leonard Lauder, is expected to set a new auction record for a Van Gogh drawing if it exceeds the $8.8m achieved by 'La Mousmé' in 2021. The drawing was originally made for the artist Émile Bernard and later passed through notable hands including dealer Ambroise Vollard and critic Théodore Duret before entering the Lauder collection. It will be sold alongside 23 other major works from Lauder's collection, including three important Gustav Klimt paintings, in a sale expected to fetch over $400m.
The sale matters because it represents a rare opportunity to acquire a Van Gogh drawing with impeccable provenance and a direct link to the artist's creative process, as it was a gift to a fellow artist and includes a sketch in Van Gogh's own letter. The auction also signals the continued strength of the high-end art market, with a single-owner collection of this caliber generating significant attention. Additionally, the proceeds from the Lauder estate sale will likely benefit philanthropic causes, continuing the family's legacy of major art donations to institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art.