18.12.10

FRANCOIS PAYARD BAKERY BLACK TRUFFLE CHOCOLATE TART


WORLD RENOWNED FRENCH PASTRY CHEF FRANCOIS PAYARD IS CREATING A TRULY DECADENT DESSERT FOR ALL CHOCOLATE LOVERS WANTING TO CELEBRATE NEW YEARS' EVE IN STYLE. FOR NEW YEARS EVE PAYARD IS OFFERING FOR THE FIRST TIME A BLACK TRUFFLE CHOCOLATE TART. INGREDIENTS INCLUDE REAL BLACK TRUFFLES, A SABLE BRETON SHELL THAT IS SPRINKLED WITH DRY GIROLLE MUSHROOM POWDER. THE TART I STOPPED OFF WITH A LAYER OF 70% GUANAJA DARK CHOCOLATE GANACHE THAT IS MIXED WITH FRESH BLACK TRUFFLE SHAVINGS DRIZZLED WITH A BIT OF BLACK TRUFFLE OIL, PIECES OF HAZELNUT NOUGATINE AND A HINT OF FLEUR DE SEL. WHILE IS MAY SOUND UNUSUAL, WORD HAS IT THAT THE TART IS ABSOLUTELY 'INCREDIBLE' ACCORDING TO THE SELECT FEW WHO HAVE BEEN TREATED TO AN ADVANCE TASTING. PAYARD DESCRIBES THE TART AS 'VERY RICH, WITH A STRONG TRUFFLE FLAVOR AND AROMA, BUT ALSO WITH A DEEP, INTENSE CHOCOLATE FLAVOR SO THAT THE EARTHINESS OF THE TRUFFLES COMPLEMENT THE SLIGHT NATIVE ACIDITY OF THE CHOCOLATE WITHOUT OVERPOWERING THE FINISHED RESULT.' THE BLACK TRUFFLE CHOCOLATE TART SERVES EIGHT PEOPLE AND IS A SPECIAL LIMITED EDITION OF ONLY 25, AND IS AVAILABLE FOR $85 AT THE NEW FRANCOIS PAYARD BAKERY AT 116 WEST HOUSTON STREET, NEW YORK.

17.12.10

BLAKE EDWARDS, DIES AGED 88


BLAKE EDWARDS, THE DIRECTOR AND WRITER KNOWN FOR CLEVER DIALOGUE, POIGNANCY AND OCCASIONAL BELLY-LAUGH SIGHT GAGS IN 'BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S', '10' AND 'THE PINK PANTHER' SERIES, IS DEAD AT 88. EDWARDS DIED FROM COMPLICATION OF PNEUMONIA AT ABOUT 10.30 PM WEDNESDAY AT ST JOHN'S HEALTH CENTER IN SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA, SAID PUBLICIST GENE SCHWAM. BLAKE'S WIFE, JULIE ANDREWS, AND OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS WERE AT HIS SIDE. HE HAD BEEN HOSPITALIZED FOR ABOUT TWO WEEKS. EDWARDS HAD KNEE PROBLEMS, HAD UNDERGONE UNSUCCESSFUL PROCEDURES AND WAS 'PRETTY MUCH CONFINED TO A WHEELCHAIR FOR THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF OR TWO', SCHWAM SAID. THAT MAY HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO HIS CONDITION, HE SAID. AT THE TIME OF HIS DEATH, EDWARDS WAS WORKING ON TWO BROADWAY MUSICALS, ONE BASED ON THE 'PINK PANTHER' MOVIES. THE OTHER, 'BIG ROSEMARY', WAS TO BE AN ORIGINAL COMEDY SET DURING PROHIBITION, SCHWAM SAID. 'HIS HEART WAS AS BIG AS HIS TALENT. HE WAS AN ACADEMY AWARD WINNER IN ALL RESPECTS', SAID SCHWAM, WHO KNEW HIM FOR 40 YEARS. A THIRD GENERATION FILMMAKER, EDWARDS WAS PRAISED FOR EVOKING CLASSIC PERFORMANCES FROM JACK LEMMON, AUDREY HEPBURN, PETER SELLERS, DUDLEY MOORE, LEE REMICK AND ANDREWS, HIS WIFE OF NEARLY HALF A CENTURY. HE DIRECTED AND OFTEN WROTE A WIDE VARIETY OF MOVIES INCLUDING 'DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES', A HARROWING STORY OF ALCOHOLISM; 'THE GREAT RACE', A COMEDY/ADVENTURE THAT STARRED LEMMON, TONY CURTIS AND NATALIE WOOD; AND 'VICTOR/VICTORIA', HIS GENDER-BENDER MUSICAL COMEDY WITH ANDREWS. HE WAS ALSO KNOWN FOR AN INDEPENDENT SPIRIT THAT BROUGHT CLASHES WITH STUDIO BOSSES. HE VENTED HIS DISDAIN FOR THE HOLLYWOOD SYSTEM IN HIS 1981 BLACK COMEDY, 'S.O.B.'

16.12.10

RARE BLUE AND WHITE PORCELAIN DRAGON VASE SELLS FOR RECORD $7,658,000


A BLUE AND WHITE PORCELAIN DRAGON JAR SOLD FOR $7,658,000 IN THE FINE ASIAN WORKS OF ART SALE ON MONDAY AT BONHAMS & BUTTERFIELDS IN SAN FRANCISCO. THE 360 LOT SALE BROUGHT MORE THAN $19 MILLION WITH THE CAST MAJORITY OF LOTS FETCHING MULTIPLES OF THEIR ESTIMATES. THE EXCITEMENT IN THE STANDING ROOM ONLY SALESROOM WAS PALPABLE, AS DETERMINED BIDDERS ON THE TELEPHONE AND IN THE AUDIENCE FOUGHT TO WIN THE MUCH COVETED JAR. BROOKE SIVO, THE SALE'S PRINCIPAL AUCTIONEER AND A 22 YEAR VETERAN OF THE ART WORLD, EXPERTLY GUIDED THE BIDDING ALONG UNTIL IT CULMINATED IN THE RECORD PRICE. THERE WAS MUCH ANTICIPATION AND DELIBERATION OVER THE DRAGON JAR. FOLLOWING CAREFUL PRE-SALE RESEARCH AND CONSULTATION, THE FIRM DESCRIBED THE JAR CONSERVATIVELY AS QIANLONG MARK, LATE QING/REPUBLIC PERIOD AND GAVE IT A PRE-SALE ESTIMATE OF $10,000-15,000. ULTIMATELY, TWO KEY BIDDERS BACKED THEIR OWN JUDGMENT AND THE DRAGON JAR SOLD FOR A REMARKABLE $7,658,000. THE BLUE AND WHITE PORCELAIN JAR MEASURES AN IMPRESSIVE 14 INCHES HIGH AND IS DECORATED WITH BANDS OF PLANTAIN LEAVES, WAVES, AND A CLOUD-COLLAR AT THE WAISTED NECK AND BROAD SHOULDERS. THE SIDES ARE DENSELY PAINTED WITH SIX METICULOUSLY RENDERED FIVE-CLAWED DRAGONS PORTRAYED EMERGING FROM THE CRASHING WAVES AND FLYING AMID STYLIZED CLOUDS AND FLAMES.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS CARTIER DESK CLOCK FOR £79,250


THE SALE OF FINE WATCHES AT SOTHEBY'S LONDON SAW A RARE GOLD AND ENAMEL BALL-SHAPED DESK CLOCK BY CARTIER SELL FOR £79,250, SOME TEN TIMES ITS PRE-SALE ESTIMATE. CONTINUING A PATTERN THAT HAS BEEN A FEATURE OF MANY RECENT SALES AT SOTHEBY'S, STRONG PRICES FOR POCKET WATCHES WERE AGAIN A FEATURE OF THE SALE. JOANNE LEWIS, HEAD OF WATCHES AT SOTHEBY'S LONDON, SAID: 'WE SAW SOME EXCEPTIONALLY STRONG PRICES TODAY FOR EXACTLY THE TYPES OF WATCHES WE HAVE SEEN CONSISTENTLY PERFORMING WELL IN OUR AUCTIONS OVER THE PAST 24 MONTHS. THE FANTASTIC PRICE FOR THE CARTIER DESK CLOCK, WHICH MADE SOME TEN TIMES ITS PRE-SALE ESTIMATE, IS FURTHER EVIDENCE OF THE STRONG DEMAND WE'RE SEEING NOW FOR DESK CLOCKS, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY.' THE SALE MADE A TOTAL OF £1,313,650 AGAINST AN ESTIMATE OF £1,243,300.

15.12.10

Cartier Winter Tale (long version)

"THE IRISH COUNTRY HOME"


THE COUNTRY HOUSES OF IRELAND ARE NOT AS WELL KNOWN AND CELEBRATED AS THOSE OF ENGLAND, YET NO SERIOUS STUDENT OF THE FORM CAN AFFORD TO MISS WHAT ARE UNDOUBTEDLY SOME OF THE MOST STUNNING EXAMPLES ON THE EMERALD ISLE. TEN EXQUISITE IRISH COUNTRY ESTATES ARE GIVEN LAVISH TREATMENT IN THE IRISH COUNTRY HOUSE, A BEAUTIFUL NEW BOOK BY IRISH ARISTOCRAT THE KNIGHT OF GILN, WHOSE OWN CASTLE IS AMONG THE FINEST, AND JAMES PEILL FROM THE VENDOME PRESS. ALL OF THE HISTORICAL HOUSES AND CASTLES FEATURED IN THE BOOK ARE STILL OWNED AND LIVED IN BY THE ORIGINAL FAMILIES, AN INCREASING RARITY, AND MANY HAVE NEVER BEEN PUBLISHED BEFORE. SPECIALLY COMMISSIONED PHOTOGRAPHS BY JAMES FENNELL SHOW GRAND BUT INVITING LIVING ROOMS, HALLWAYS LINED WITH HUNTING PRINTS, WELL-TRAMPLED MUDROOMS AND RICHLY-FURNISHED LIBRARIES. THE DECOR OF THE HOUSES HAS 'EVOLVED OVER GENERATIONS, FURNISHED WITH HEIRLOOMS AND CHERISHED HAND-ME-DOWNS, EXUDING THE MOSSY SCENT OF PEAT FIRES', FULL OF TELLING DETAILS CAPTURING THE DISTINCTIVE PERSONALITIES OF THE COLOURFUL INHABITANTS WHOSE STORIES ARE RECOUNTED IN THE TEXT.

BERLIN'S ALTE NATIONALGALERIE PRESENTS AN EXHIBITION OF RETURNED WORKS


A PAINTING OF THE FLORENCE SKYLINE THAT HUNG IN ADOLF HITLER'S BERLIN APARTMENT THROUGHOUT WORLD WAR II AND WAS MISSING FOR DECADES WENT ON DISPLAY RECENTLY IN AN EXHIBITION OF WORKS RETURNED TO THE COLLECTION OF A MAJOR GERMAN MUSEUM. THE EXHIBITION CENTERS ON 18 WORKS RETURNED TO THE ALTE NATIONALGALERIE OVER THE PAST DECADE, MORE THAN HALF A CENTURY SINCE THEY WERE REMOVED FROM ITS PREMISES. IT ALSO USES OFFICIAL AND LOAN LISTS, PHOTOGRAPHS AND OTHER DOCUMENTS TO SHOW HOW THE PIECES WERE TAKEN DOWN FROM THE MUSEUM WALLS TO WIND UP ON ODYSSEYS THROUGH FLAK TOWERS, SALT MINES AND WATER-SOAKED CELLARS. MANY OF THE WORKS FOUND THEIR WAY INTO PRIVATE HANDS, BUT MUSEUM OFFICIALS SAY A RECENT INTERNATIONAL PUSH FOR RESTITUTION HAS RESULTED IN AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF WORKS RETURNING TO THE MUSEUM IN THE PAST 10 YEARS. AT THE END OF THE WORLD WAR II IN 1945, SOME 800 WORKS THAT HAD BEEN IN THE COLLECTION OF THE ALTE NATIONALGALERIE WERE MISSING. ABOUT TWO-THIRDS OF THEM WERE RECOVERED BY THE END OF THE 1950s. SINCE 1990, MORE THAN TWO DOZEN OTHERS HAVE BEEN RETURNED, INCLUDING THOSE IN THE EXHIBITION. POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS, INCLUDING GERMANY'S, AND BERLIN'S, REUNIFICATION AND USE OF THE INTERNET TO CIRCULATE DATABASES, HOWEVER, HAVE MADE IT EASIER TO SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT MISSING ARTWORKS, LEADING TO A JUMP IN THE NUMBER OF RETURNS SINCE 2000, BERLIN MUSEUM DIRECTOR MICHAEL EISSENHAUER SAID. 'A VIEW OF FLORENCE', BY 19th CENTURY PAINTER WILHELM AHLBORNS, WAS ONE OF 68 WORKS LOANED BY THE GALLERY TO THE NAZI REGIME AND HUNG IN HITLER'S PRIVATE QUARTERS AT HIS CHANCELLERY. EARLIER THIS YEAR, IT TURNED UP IN A BERLIN ART GALLERY, WHICH IN TURN ALERTED THE MUSEUM. ONCE THE GALLERY PROVES OWNERSHIP, USING PRE-WAR DOCUMENTATION OR MARKINGS ON THE PAINTINGS THEMSELVES, IT HAS BEEN ABLE TO NEGOTIATE A 'FINDER'S FEE' FOR THE CURRENT OWNERS, WORTH ROUGHLY 10% OF THE ARTWORK'S MARKET VALUE. ANOTHER WORK IN THE EXHIBIT, WHICH OPENED TO THE PUBLIC FRIDAY AND RUNS THROUGH 6.MARCH.2011, WAS REACQUIRED BY THE MUSEUM IN OCTOBER. IN 1942, 'DOG WITH GRAY HORSE' BY ENGLISH PAINTER WILLIAM COLE, HAD BEEN HUNG BY NAZI OFFICIALS IN A BERLIN VILLA THAT WAS TO HOUSE THE THEN EXILED IRAQI PRIME MINISTER. AT THE WAR'S END, HE MOVED SOUTH TO A VILLAGE OUTSIDE DRESDEN AND THE PAINTING WAS GIVEN TO THE HOUSEKEEPER AS PAYMENT. A DESCENDANT OF THE HOUSEKEEPER IDENTIFIED IT THROUGH A DATABASE OF LOST ARTWORK AND CONTACTED THE MUSEUM, REFLECTING WHAT EISSENHAUER CALLED A GENERATION CHANGE THAT IS BENEFITING THE MUSEUM. 'MANY PAINTINGS ARE CHANGING HANDS AND THE YOUNGER GENERATION IS STARTING TO ASK WHERE THEY CAME FROM', EISSENHAUR SAID. 'WE ARE HOPING THAT THE CURVE WILL CONTINUE TO GO UP.'

14.12.10

BOUCHERON INSPIRIA COLLECTION




LUXURY JEWELRY DESIGNER BOUCHERON HAVE RECENTLY RELEASED A UNIQUE AND IMAGINATIVE PREMIER JEWELRY COLLECTION TO MARK THE 20th ANNIVERSARY OF WORLD RENOWNED CIRCE DU SOLEIL. THE BOUCHERON INSPIRIA COLLECTION FEATURES TWENTY DIFFERENT NECKLACES EACH INCLUDING A PERSONAL PATTERN AND DESIGN TO GIVE A REMARKABLE SENSE OF COLOURFUL BEAUTY. THE COLLECTION FEATURES PRECIOUS METALS AND A STUNNING SELECTION OF BRIGHTLY COLOURED PRECIOUS GEMS INCLUDING DIAMONDS, EMERALDS, SAPPHIRES AND RUBIES. THE BOUCHERON INSPIRIA COLLECTION IS AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY AT BOUCHERON BOUTIQUES WORLDWIDE.

13.12.10

COLOUR FOR 2011 PANTONE® 18-2120 HONEYSUCKLE


EACH DECEMBER, PANTONE, THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON COLOUR AND PROVIDER OF PROFESSIONAL COLOUR STANDARDS FOR THE DESIGN INDUSTRY, CHOOSES THEIR COLOUR FOR THE NEXT YEAR. THE CHOICE FOR 2009 WAS SUNNY MIMOSA YELLOW AND 2010 SAW TURQUOISE ASCEND TO THE THRONE. TURQUOISE SEEMED TO BE PARTICULARLY POPULAR SHOWING UP BOTH IN FASHION AND HOME DECOR. PANTONE ANNOUNCED PANTONE® 18-2120 HONEYSUCKLE AS THE COLOUR OF THE YEAR FOR 2011. HONEYSUCKLE IS A REDDISH PINK. LEATRICE EISEMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE PANTONE COLOUR INSTITUTE SAYS THAT 'HONEYSUCKLE DERIVES ITS POSITIVE QUALITIES FROM A POWERFUL BOND TO ITS MOTHER RED, THE MOST PHYSICAL, VISCERALLY ALIVE HUE IN THE SPECTRUM.' WHEN WORN BY MEN AND WOMEN THE COLOUR IMPARTS A HEALTHY GLOW AND IT CAN ADD A BIT OF FLAIR TO INTERIOR SPACES. HONEYSUCKLE IS ONE OF NEARLY 200 PANTONE COLOURS AVAILABLE FROM DESSY, A LEADING MANUFACTURER OF BRIDESMAID, SOCIAL-OCCASION AND FLOWER-GIRL DRESSES. IT IS ALSO AVAILABLE IN PAINT.

BARBOUR OPENS NEW YORK BOUTIQUE


CLASSIC BRITISH OUTERWEAR COMPANY BARBOUR HAS RECENTLY OPENED A NEW BOUTIQUE IN NEW YORK ON WOOSTER ST IN SOHO's HISTORIC CAST IRON DISTRICT. THE NEW SPACE WILL BE OPEN BRIEFLY TO FEATURE THE BARBOUR AUTUMN/WINTER 2010 HERITAGE COLLECTION THROUGH THE HOLIDAYS, AND WILL THE REOPEN PERMANENTLY IN EARLY SPRING WITH A COMPLETE COLLECTION OF SPRING/SUMMER 2011 BARBOUR APPAREL AND ACCESSORIES. 'WE ARE VERY EXCITED TO EXPAND OUR NEW YORK PRESENCE WITH A NEW STORE IN SOHO', NOTES JAMIE MILLAR, HEAD OF RETAIL FOR BARBOUR INC, NORTH AMERICA. 'THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS STEEPED IN HISTORY AND CULTURE, BUT IS CONSTANTLY EVOLVING AND REMAINS ONE OF THE MOST FASHIONABLE NEIGHBORHOODS IN THE COUNTRY. WITH BARBOUR'S STRONG HERITAGE AND GROWING POPULARITY AMONG THE FASHION FORWARD, SOHO WAS A NATURAL FIT FOR BARBOUR. WE ARE VERY EXCITED TO BE JOINING SUCH A PRESTIGIOUS SHOPPING DISTRICT.' OTHER BARBOUR RETAIL STORE LOCATIONS INCLUDE MADISON AVENUE, NEW YORK CITY, BOSTON, AND BARBOUR BY DAVID WOOD BOUTIQUE IN PORTLAND, MAINE.

12.12.10

NEWLY DISCOVERED LICHTENSTEIN PAINTING SELLS FOR RECORD $110,000


A 1951 PAINTING BY ROY LICHTENSTEIN PURCHASED FOR $27.50 AND KEPT OUT OF THE PUBLIC EYE FOR NEARLY 50 YEARS SOLD FOR $128,700 ON 4.DECEMBER AT QUINN'S AUCTION GALLERIES IN FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA. TITLED 'THE STATESMAN', THE 18 BY 28 INCH OIL ON CANVAS PORTRAIT WAS CONSIGNED BY DC AREA RESIDENT ENID LIESS, A RETIRED SCHOOLTEACHER WHO, AS A YOUNG GIRL HAD STUDIED AT THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO. IT WAS THERE THAT SHE LEARNED HOW TO IDENTIFY QUALITY ARTWORKS. SOMETIME IN THE EARLY 1960s, LIESS ATTENDED AN ART AUCTION AT HER LOCAL TEMPLE, WHERE SHE HOPED TO FIND AFFORDABLE ART TO DECORATE HER NEW APARTMENT. WHEN A MODERN PAINTING OF A MAN IN A MILITARY JACKET CAUGHT HER EYE, LIESS DECIDED SHE HAD TO HAVE IT. 'IT WAS WHIMSICAL, AND I LOVED THE EARTH TONES', LIESS RECALLED. AT THE TIME, LIESS AND HER HUSBAND WERE NEWLYWEDS WITH LITTLE DISPOSABLE INCOME, SO SHE HAD A LIMIT OF $25 TO SPEND AT THE AUCTION. ALTHOUGH THE ARTIST WAS IDENTIFIED ON THE ARTWORK, NO ONE AT THE AUCTION, INCLUDING LIESS, KNEW WHO LICHTENSTEIN WAS. ACCORDINGLY, BIDDING ON THE PAINTING WAS OPENED LOWER THAN ON WORKS BY MOST OF THE LOCAL ARTIST WITH WHOM BIDDERS WERE MORE FAMILIAR. LIESS HAD A BID AT HER MAXIMUM JUST AS THE HAMMER WAS ABOUT TO FALL ON THE LICHTENSTEIN. THEN, AT THE LAST MOMENT, HER FRIEND UPPED THE ANTE TO $27.50. LIESS WAS FURIOUS AND REBUKED HER FRIEND, WHO QUICKLY INFORMED LIESS THAT IT WAS INTENDED AS A HOUSEWARMING GIFT FOR HER AND HER HUSBAND. LIESS TOLD HER FRIEND THAT SHE FELT $27.50 WAS TOO MUCH TO SPEND ON A GIFT AND GAVE HER $12.50 TO APPLY TOWARD THE PURCHASE PRICE. THE PAINTING WENT HOME WITH LIESS AND HUNG IN THE COUPLE'S NEW APARTMENT WITH NOTHING MORE THAN A COUCH TO KEEP IT COMPANY. WHILE SHE KNEW THE ARTWORK'S TITLE AND THE NAME OF THE ARTIST WHO PAINTED IT, LIESS WAS UNAWARE OF ROY LICHTENSTEIN'S STATURE IN THE POP ART WORLD UNTIL SHE HAPPENED TO COME ACROSS A TIME MAGAZINE ARTICLE ABOUT THE ARTIST A COUPLE OF WEEKS LATER. HER DISCOVERY PROMPTED HER TO TAKE THE PAINTING TO THE MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM, WHERE EXPERTS CONFIRMED 'THE STATESMAN' WAS A GENUINE LICHTENSTEIN. SATISFIED WITH THAT KNOWLEDGE, SHE THOUGHT NOTHING MORE OF IT. IN 1968, LIESS AND HER HUSBAND MOVED THEIR FAMILY TO VIRGINIA. THE ARTWORK WENT WITH THEM, WHERE IT WAS DISPLAYED AND ENJOYED FOR THE NEXT 42 YEARS. THIS SUMMER LEISS DECIDED IT WAS TIME TO SELL THE PAINTING. SHE REACHED OUT TO MATTHEW QUINN OF QUINN'S AUCTION GALLERIES. QUINN ADVISED HER TO CONTACT JACK COWART, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE ROY LICHTENSTEIN FOUNDATION, TO SEE IF HE WOULD AUTHENTICATE THE PAINTING. THE LICHTENSTEIN FOUNDATION KNEW WHO HAD ORIGINALLY PURCHASED 'THE STATESMAN' IN 1951 FROM THE JOHN HELLER GALLERY IN NEW YORK, BUT BEYOND THAT, THE OWNERSHIP TRAIL WAS A MYSTERY. THE FOUNDATION HAD BEEN TRYING FOR DECADES TO DETERMINE IT WHEREABOUTS. QUINN SAID THAT COWART'S IMPRIMATUR ON THE PAINTING, ALL THE ELEMENTS FOR AUCTION SUCCESS WERE NOW IN PLACE, A BANKABLE ARTIST, A LONG-MISSING ARTWORK AND INDISPUTABLE PROVENANCE. AT AROUND 11.30 ON THE MORNING OF THE AUCTION, 'THE STATESMAN' WAS ANNOUNCED TO A FULL HOUSE. BIDDING OPENED AT $20,000 AND SLOWLY INCREASED AGAINST AN ABSENTEE BID OF $40,000. THE BIDDING CONCLUDED AT $110,000 ON THE HAMMER. 'AS I UNDERSTAND IT, THAT'S A RECORD PRICE FOR A LICHTENSTEIN OF THAT PERIOD', SAID QUINN. APPROPRIATELY FOR A PAINTING TITLED 'THE STATESMAN', THE LICHTENSTEIN ARTWORK IS GOING TO REMAIN IN WASHINGTON DC.