Two monumental canvases by Claude Monet, unseen by the public for a century, are to be offered at Sotheby's Paris on 22 October. The works, Iris and Weeping Willow, form part of a 28-piece collection assembled by the Schlumberger family, a name long whispered about in French art circles but rarely seen in the flesh.
Iris, a late-period Monet painted in the final years of his life, carries an estimate of €22–30 million — the highest pre-sale valuation ever placed on a painting in France. Weeping Willow is expected to fetch between €9 and €10 million. Both have remained in the Schlumberger family's Paris sitting room since they were acquired directly from the artist's descendants in the 1950s, bypassing the auction market entirely.
A collector's quiet triumph
The collection's guardian was Jeanne Schlumberger (1889–1983), described by Sotheby's as a brilliant art collector. She purchased the Monets through the visionary gallerist Katia Granoff, who had direct access to the painter's family. Thomas Bompard, co-director of Sotheby's Modern and Contemporary Art department in France, notes that the works' provenance has only added to their allure: "Many people knew the story, or at least knew of the existence of this collection; people whispered that these were the finest Monets in Paris, but very few had actually seen them. That is also what is fuelling today's excitement."
What makes these canvases particularly remarkable is their condition. According to Bompard, they have never been varnished, restored, or removed from their original stretchers. "They are exactly as Monet painted them 100 years ago," he says. Art historian Marianne Mathieu explains why this matters: varnish alters chromatic tones, while restoration can damage the thick impasto that defines late Monet. "Late Monet is a Monet who works the material. So to truly discover and understand him, that material has to be preserved," she says.
The sale comes as Paris marks the centenary of Monet's death on 5 December 1926. Two major exhibitions open in the capital at the end of September — Monet, Painting Time and Stories of Landscapes, from Monet to Hockney — adding to the heightened interest in the artist's legacy.
Beyond the four Monets, the Schlumberger collection includes a sculpture by Camille Claudel and several paintings by Gustave Moreau. A wall composition of three works by Paul Cézanne is also on offer, with the central piece, La Ferme, described as the largest Cézanne ever to appear at auction, estimated at €600,000–800,000. The three Cézannes have been designated "national treasures," a status that grants the French state 30 months to arrange a possible acquisition before they can leave the country.
The entire sale is expected to raise more than €40 million. For collectors and institutions alike, it represents a rare chance to acquire works that have never been seen in color by the general public — a quiet chapter of French art history finally coming to light.
