The Painting Owned by Paul Allen That Set Paul Signac's Auction Record Twice
3 min read · 10 Jul 2025
Concarneau, calme du matin (Opus no. 219, larghetto). Image courtesy of Christie's
Paul Signac's Concarneau, calme du matin (Opus no. 219, larghetto) (1891) sold for $39.32m at Christie's in New York on November 9, 2022. The oil on canvas work had been traded 5 times in the past.
After his friend and fellow artist Georges Seurat died unexpectedly at the age of just 31, Paul Signac left Paris for a summer in Brittany sailing his new boat, a racing yacht called Olympia.
That summer inspired the artist to create five seascapes, known as "La Mer: Les Barques (Concarneau)", which were masterworks of the pointillist style he and Seurat had pioneered.
The series proved popular with collectors, with each of the paintings soon finding buyers. Concarneau, calme du matin (Opus no. 219, larghetto) was probably the first painting to leave Signac’s studio, acquired just weeks after it was finished by the collector Henri-Nicolas Lejeune.
In 1998, it was acquired by Paul Allen, the Microsoft co-founder, for $4.4m, which was then an auction record for the artist.
Le Port Au Soleil Couchant, Opus 236 (saint-tropez). Image courtesy of Christie's
The sale beat the artist’s previous auction record by $13.31m, a 51% rise. His previous record was set by another seascape, Le Port Au Soleil Couchant, Opus 236 (saint-tropez) (1892), which sold for $26.01m at Christie's on February 27, 2019. The work had been traded 8 times in the past.
A Brief History of Paul Signac at Auction
Sale Date | Title | Price | Record Increase | Venue | City |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2022-11-09 | Concarneau, calme du matin (Opus no. 219, larghetto) | $39.32m | 51 % | Christie's | New York |
2019-02-27 | Le Port Au Soleil Couchant, Opus 236 (saint-tropez) | $26.01m | 85 % | Christie's | London |
2007-11-06 | Cassis Cap Canaille | $14.04m | 35 % | Christie's | New York |
2007-05-09 | Arriere du tub | $10.4m | 76 % | Christie's | New York |
2005-06-20 | Andelys, les laveuses | $5.93m | 35 % | Sotheby's | London |
1998-11-18 | Concarneau calme du matin | $4.4m | 76 % | Christie's | New York |
1989-11-14 | Concarneau, le sardinier et la vieille ville | $2.5m | 13 % | Christie's | New York |
1989-03-18 | Venise Bateaux a voiles Santa Maria della Salute dans le fond | $2.22m | 21 % | Champin | Lombrail & Gautier |
1988-11-28 | Venise - Le Nuage Rose | $1.84m | 31 % | Christie's | London |
1988-11-15 | St. Tropez soleil couchant sur la ville | $1.4m | 43 % | Christie's | New York |
1985-12-03 | Brise, Concarneau, Presto | $976,100 | 99 % | Sotheby's | London |
1980-05-12 | Le Port Au Soleil Couchant, Opus 236 (saint-tropez) | $490,000 | 96 % | Sotheby's | New York |
1971-05-05 | Le port de Collioure | $250,000 | 167 % | Sotheby's | New York |
1968-07-03 | Venise le Matin | $93,600 | 39 % | Sotheby's | London |
1963-04-24 | Bateaux, Ponton Des Bains (opus No. 96) (recto); Vue Du Quai De La Tournelle (verso) | $67,200 | 105 % | Sotheby's | London |
1961-06-28 | Venise, S. Maria della Salute, gondoles au premier plan | $32,800 | 6 % | Sotheby's | London |
1957-11-07 | Portrieux. La Comtesse (opus No. 191) | $31,000 | - | Parke-Bernet Galleries | - |
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