Vladimir Tretchikoff Painting Smashes World Auction Record at Strauss & Co Sale in Johannesburg

28 May 2025

JOHANNESBURG, 27 May 2025 – Strauss & Co, Africa’s leading auction house, set a new world record for Russia-born South African painter Vladimir Tretchikoff on Tuesday night with the sale of his 1955 portrait Lady from the Orient for R31 110 000 / US$1 735 409 / £1 285 418.

The iconic painting was sold to an anonymous telephone bidder after a dramatic flurry of 89 bids, narrowly beating a determined in-room contender at the live auction in Johannesburg. The final price, inclusive of commission and taxes, comfortably eclipses the previous world record for a Tretchikoff work, set at £982 050 in March 2013 at a London auction for Chinese Girl (1952).

“It is always good when there is a murmur before a big lot,” said auctioneer Alastair Meredith as he introduced Lady from the Orient. Bidding opened briskly and quickly escalated. “We’ve breached the $1 million mark,” he remarked after accepting a bid of R18 million. The excitement mounted. “The next bid is R25.2 million, which is something I have never said,” he shortly added. It took nine more bids before the painting found its new owner at new world record price. Cue flurry of applause.Lady from the Orient depicts 21-year-old Valerie Howe, daughter of a Cape Town grocer, and is one of Tretchikoff’s most recognisable works. Drawing inspiration from Pre-Raphaelite painting and Golden Age Hollywood glamour, the portrait features Howe in a vivid green silk gown rendered in Tretchikoff’s signature Technicolor palette. The work belongs to a small group of iconic images produced by the artist during the decade following his move to South Africa in 1946. A print edition of Lady from the Orient became a popular sensation in 1960s Britain.

The auction delivered strong results for William Kentridge, George Pemba, JH Pierneef, Gerard Sekoto and Anton van Wouw, affirming robust interest in a cross-section of South African art. The 100-lot sale of modern and contemporary art earned a combined total of over R62.9 million.

www.straussart.co.za

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