In 1958, when John Herbert joined Christie's and initiated their press office, fine art auctions were mysterious to the general public and Christie's functioned in a traditional way through family connections and gentlemen's agreements. Their assumed position as leaders of the art market had just been taken from them by their arch-rivals Sotheby's and they were endangered by falling profits and a lack of top-quality goods to sell. In 1985 when he retired the outlook had been entirely transformed: Christie's was an international concern, handling pictures and other properties which fetched enormous prices, offering all sorts of expertise and services, highly profitable - and still trusted by "the best people". From his privileged and hard-working position in the press office John Herbert saw the whole process of this fabulous turn-around: the big stories and the big deals, the development of marketing and the spread of wider knowledge, the mistakes and the near-misses, the expansion and the slumps, the rivalry and the scandals: the exposure of "the Ring", the uproar over the bidding at the sale of the Rembrandt "Titus" (which provoked a memorable Osbert Lancaster cartoon), and the revelation that bought-in pictures were included in sales totals. Fine art auctions became news, and John Herbert handled that news, present as he was at the big events that shaped a new trend in British social history: London as the well-publicized centre of the art world. John Herbert started his working life with ten years of journalism, after service in the RNVR and New College, Oxford. He then entered public relations, which led him to Christie's. Here he initiated the press office and was Public Relations Director from 1959 onwards until his early retirement in 1985. He has since then continued to keep sharp attention fixed on the art world.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
As public relations director at the British auction house from 1958 to 1985, Herbert witnessed Christie's drive to catch up with rival Sotheby's, once far ahead in the race. In time, Christie's surpassed Sotheby's in the international market, as the author demonstrates with graphs appended to the text. But much more intriguing than the factual record are Herbert's exciting, often droll backstage tales of big deals: Christie's team risking death bidding for treasures in Cuba during the Bay of Pigs crisis; a millionaire's wife buying unrestrainedly while her husband is accidentally trapped in the men's room. Herbert colors his account with details of fabulous jewels and other art objects, although such riches fade beside descriptions of the world's greatest paintings. The book closes on the bedlam created by the 19-million sale of Picasso's Jeune Arlequin to Japanese bidders in London. Illustrations not seen by PW.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
The workings of Christie's Auction House are detailed by Herbert, who started its press office in 1958 and served as public relations director until he retired in 1985. Herbert's viewpoint as a Christie's loyalist glides from analytical to adoring, while his intimate recollections of estates, specific art works, and auctions are offered in an easy, anecdotal style. The book is British through and through, yet it should appeal to readers for whom the economics of art and the great privately held (then auctioned) collections hold greater sway than the art itself. Recommended for museum, academic, and public library collections.
- David Bryant, Belleville P.L., N.J.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
- David Bryant, Belleville P.L., N.J.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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