NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas – Lark Mason Associates will present “Property From the Collection of Anthony Bourdain,” a one-of-a-kind auction that is open for bidding through Oct. 30. The auction showcases 215 lots that celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain personally acquired during his life and it includes some of his most valued possessions: artwork, books, home and decorative furnishings, knives, wristwatches and apparel.
A significant portion of the proceeds will benefit the Anthony Bourdain Legacy Scholarship at his alma mater, the Culinary Institute of America. The scholarship was established – in the spirit of Bourdain himself – to support CIA students pursuing a semester abroad or taking part in one of the college’s global cuisines and cultures international programs. The remaining proceeds will go to the Estate of Anthony Bourdain.
“We are extremely delighted to join forces with the Bourdain family and the Culinary Institute of America to sponsor this auction of uniquely personal items from the Anthony Bourdain estate,” said Lark Mason. “He was a larger-than-life personality with so many interests other than food and this sale reflects his multidimensional persona. We have kept the estimates low so that everyone who loved Tony will have the opportunity to purchase something from this sale and know that part of the proceeds will be going to a good cause.”
The sale is divided into categories that reflect Bourdain’s multifarious interests: film, art, cooking, travel, writing and his endless observations of world culture. Exhibitions of select items will run concurrently at Lark Mason Associates’ gallery in New Braunfels, Texas, 210 W. Mill St.; and in New York City at 227 E. 120th St.; as well as at Everard and Co., in Savannah, Georgia, at 2436 Waters Avenue. Visit Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Among the auction highlights are:
– Brad Phillips (Canadian), Cristine and Me as Still-Life, oil on canvas, 2016. Estimate: $2,000-$4,000.
– John Lurie (American, born 1952), This Party Sucks, watercolor on paper. Estimate: $1,000-$2,000.
– Peter Lovig Nielsen teak flip-top desk, Denmark, 20th century. Estimate: $800-$1,200.
– Custom Bob Kramer steel and meteorite chef’s knife. Estimate: $4,000-$6,000.
– Chrome duck press from the Paris episode of The Layover. Estimate: $200-$300.
– A Vietnamese blue-and-white ceramic tall bottle form vase, with cover. Estimate: $250-$450.
An original typed manuscript or early draft for A Bone in the Throat, by Anthony Bourdain (est: $700-$1,000), as well as a Simpson script for The Food Wife, with signed inscriptions to Bourdain (est. $800-$1,200) are also on offer.
The auction will continue Anthony Bourdain’s interest in education via the Anthony Bourdain Legacy Scholarship at the Culinary Institute of America, his alma mater. The donations from the sale, equal to 40 percent of the hammer price, will be made by the Bourdain family. Chef Bourdain graduated from the CIA in the class of 1978 and in 2017 received an honorary Doctor of Human Letters in Culinary Arts, presented by CIA President Dr. Tim Ryan, who acknowledged his importance as “possibly the most recognizable food personality on the planet.”
“We are deeply honored that the Bourdain family has chosen to further Anthony’s curiosity and passion for learning through this generous donation that will support CIA students in their journeys,” said Dr. Ryan. “The ability to travel and experience other cuisines and cultures first-hand is a priceless gift that will ensure that his legacy lives on in the future leaders of the food world.”
Wrote his biographer and assistant Laurie Woolever: “Tony was an enthusiast-of film, of literature, good sharp knives, meaningful mementos of his travels, comedy, contemporary art, and of observing the ways that people lived, ate and loved all over the world. He never failed to be astonished by his good fortune, which allowed him to collaborate with some of his idols – a book cover drawn by the great illustrator Ralph Steadman, for instance, and a GQ photoshoot with rock idol Iggy Pop. Tony loved a well-cut suit, bespoke shoes, a spy novel, a simple omelet, odd medical instruments, old maps and a tale well told. He died in 2018 at the age of 61 in France.
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