Sydell Miller’s Art Collection Shines at Sotheby’s, Fetching 215.9 Million Amidst Market Volatility

By Elizabeth Gillett

Matisse, Jeune Fille en Robe Rose, 1942, in Miller’s Palm Beach home.

Image courtesy of Frank Frances for Sotheby’s.

Hitting the auction block Monday evening at Sotheby’s, A Legacy of Beauty: The Collection of Sydell Miller Evening Auction has been a bright spot amidst a tumultuous market. Following Miller’s death in February, age 86, the beauty-mogul’s collection made its way across the globe, showing in London, Paris, Taipei, Los Angeles, and Hong Kong, before landing in New York. Bringing in 215.9 million USD, including fees, the evening auction was followed by a day auction on Tuesday and three upcoming online sales, focused on decorative art and silver, furniture, and fashion. Additionally, Miller’s jewellery collection will be featured in two sales in December.

Collage featuring Sydell and Arnold Miller and aspects of vintage Ardell advertisements.

Image courtesy of Leah Romero and Ardell.

Miller, a self-made businesswoman and philanthropist hailing from Cleveland, Ohio, made her fortune through her contributions to the beauty industry. Founding two companies with her husband, Arnold Miller, she invented the first pre-cut false eyelashes and false eyelash strips as well as the first cream-based hair dye. Both Ardell, which specialised in false lashes, and Matrix Essentials, known today as the biggest producer of salon products in the United States, centred around celebrating the creativity of cosmetologists, whilst simplifying beauty routines.

Following the sale of the businesses in the 1990s, Miller’s penchant for collecting took off. Speaking of her collecting practice Miller stated: ‘I collect pieces I love. Each piece I collect speaks to me in a language of art and design and always excited me when I saw them for the first time… I never collected from just one period in time or style. I always collected things that I connected to through their beauty.’

René Magritte, Les Troubles du Coeur, 1943, oil on canvas, 55.4 by 75 cm.

Image courtesy of Sotheby’s.

The white-glove sale—marked by intense competition, bidding wars, and a one-hour delay for the subsequent auction—reflects the trend of bidder enthusiasm for notable estates and collections. Amongst the sale’s most coveted lots was Monet’s Nymphéas, 1914-1917, which sold for the first time at auction for 65.5 million USD, following a 17-minute bidding war. Picasso’s La Statuaire, 1925, fetched 24.8 million, whilst Kandinsky’s White Oval, 1921–one of three works painted whilst the artist lived in Russia—sold for 21.6 million. Further highlights included Francois-Xavier Lalanne’s ‘Troupeau d'Éléphants dans les Arbres’ Table, 2001, selling for well above its estimate (four to six million) at 11.6 million, Matisse’s Jeune Fille en Robe Rose, 1942, at 7.9 million, and René Magritte’s Les Troubles du Coeur, 1943, at 2.04 million. 

The subsequent Modern Evening Sale, performed less impressively, generating 93.1 million USD, with two lots withdrawn and an addition seven going unsold. This contrasts sharply with the equivalent sale last November, which brought in 223.4 million.

The Miller sale aligns with a trend of successful estate auctions following notable collections such as the Emily Fisher Landau Collection (406 million USD) at Sotheby’s this past November and the record-breaking Paul Allen Sale (1.5 billion USD) at Christie’s in 2022.

Despite this week’s mixed results, the success of Miller’s evening sale is evidence of cautious optimism within the art market. London-based dealer Pilar Ordovas added that ‘strong prices and deep bidding’ indicate a market responding positively after recent ambiguity related to the U.S. presidential election. With global art auction turnover in the contemporary segment still 200 million USD above its average annual turnover in the five years preceding the pandemic, the market remains resilient throughout current social and political uncertainty.

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