Title: Former NYC Dog Walker’s Disappointment as Gifted Chuck Close Painting Sells for Fraction of Expected Price
Published: November 19, 2023, 3:36 a.m. ET
A surreal turn of events recently unfolded in the art world when an abstract painting by renowned artist Chuck Close, gifted to a New York City dog walker, failed to fetch the expected $10 million at auction and instead sold for a mere $40,000.
Mark Herman, a 68-year-old retiree living off Social Security in Manhattan, received the untitled 6-foot abstract nude painting from former lawyer Isidore Silver. Silver, who had represented Close in a lawsuit in the 1960s, passed the painting onto Herman as his health declined.
Herman, under the belief that the psychedelic mushrooms induced vision would come true, prepared the painting for auction at Sotheby’s. However, Close’s estate had no record of the painting, and Sotheby’s pulled it a day before the auction, leaving Herman with a hefty bill for the canvas preparation.
Fortunately, a University of Massachusetts archivist discovered a photograph of the painting in a 1967 issue of the student paper, confirming it to be an original Close artwork. The painting went to auction at Heritage Auctions in Dallas and ultimately sold for $40,000 to Long Island lawyer James Pincow and his father.
The disappointing sale left Herman with mixed emotions, but he remains hopeful for the future and seems content with the outcome. The bizarre journey of the painting, from a drug-induced vision to a meager auction sale, has left many intrigued by its unique backstory.
Source: [New York Post](https://nypost.com/2023/11/19/entertainment/nyc-dog-walkers-dreams-shattered-when-gifted-chuck-close-painting-falls-at-auction/?utm_source=url_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons)
