Christie’s to Offer Personal Collection of Audrey Hepburn
Come Fall and Audrey Hepburn’s fans will be able to get their hands on items from the personal collection of Hollywood star and fashion icon, including clothes from her personal wardrobe and her own annotated working copies of film scripts from her best loved films including Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
A flagship sale will be held on September 27 at Christie’s King Street headquarters in London, while an online sale will be opened for bidding from 19 September until 3 October.
This is the first time these personal items have been offered for sale and the collection will be on view to the public in an exhibition at Christie’s King Street, London from 23 September.
The sales will also include portraits from her personal archives, many dating from between 1953 and 1968 when she was at the height of her screen career, and her own collection of memorabilia and letters which offer an intimate snapshot of her life and career.
“Her name is one that instantly resonates; her appeal and relevance remain as strong today as they ever were. The sales will offer fans and collectors alike the opportunity to acquire unique personal objects which have never before been seen on the market and which will undoubtedly offer new insights into the remarkable life of a remarkable woman,” said Adrian Hume-Sayer, Director, Private Collections at Christie’s.
With estimates ranging from £100 to £80,000, the auction include pieces that exemplified her signature look such as a Burberry trench coat (estimate: £6,000-8,000) and a selection of her ballet pumps in a rainbow of colours, with estimates from £1,500.
Hepburn has long been associated with the celebrated couturier Hubert de Givenchy who was first hired at her suggestion to design her wardrobe for Sabrina. The two became close friends with the actress often wearing his clothes in private, and Givenchy went on to design her costumes for Love in the Afternoon, Funny Face, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Paris When It Sizzles and How to Steal a Million.
A highlight of the sales will be a blue satin Givenchy cocktail dress worn by Hepburn, in a photo shoot photographed by William Klein for a fashion editorial promoting Two for the Road in 1966 (estimate: £10,000-15,000). The elegant gown is trimmed with blue satin fringes and epitomises the deceptively simple style for which Givenchy and Hepburn are famous.
In December 2006, the black satin Givenchy evening gown she wore in Breakfast At Tiffany’s sold at Christie’s for £456,200., well above its pre-sale estimate of £50,000-70,000. At the time, the auction set a new world record for a dress made for a movie.
