Another sad day for Polaroid

Another sad day for Polaroid as the BJP releases news that Sotheby’s is planning to break up the renowned Polaroid Collection to sell more than 1200 of its prints. Below is the BJP article in full from 11th February 2010,

“Auction house Sotheby's has announced plans to sell more than 1200 prints from the Polaroid Collection this June, with images from Ansel Adams, Andy Warhol, Chuck Close, David Levinthal and Robert Frank among others.

The auction is slated to take place on 21 and 22 June. Visitors will be able to view the 1200 prints in a public exhibition planned to start six days before the auction. This will be the last time the Collection will be seen together.

The auction stems from the collapse of Polaroid last year after its parent company found itself embroiled in a Ponzi scheme. In August 2009, a Minnesota Bankruptcy Court approved the break-up and sale of the Polaroid Collection, which includes more than 16,000 instant images.

The collection was created in the late 1960s and comprises photographs and negatives from more than 1500 photographers including as Ansel Adams, William Wegman, Chuck Close, Lucas Samaras and Harry Callahan. In total, it holds more than 22,000 items, however, 6000 of these images are on loan with to the Paris-based Maison Europeenne de la Photographie and the Musee de l'Elysee in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Previously, Polaroid had estimated the collection to be worth $8.8m. The new owners were asking the court authorisation to proceed with the sale 'free and clear of all liens, claims, interests and encumbrances.'

The first 1200 Polaroid’s to be sold include more than 400 images by Ansel Adams, some worth as much as $500,000 - in the case of the "Winter Sunrise, Sierra Nevada, from Lone Pine, 1944" Polaroid. In total, the auction is expected to fetch between $7.5m and $11.5m.

The auction house still has more than 10,000 images that haven't been catalogued yet. These Polaroid’s could become part of a second auction or be acquired by a Museum.”

Article taken from BJP, 11th February 2010 © Incisive Media Ltd. 2009