NEW YORK, NY.- Christie's announced Radiant Modernism, a Private European Collection of late 19th- to 20th-century art spanning paintings, works on paper and prints, which will be offered across multiple sales and regions from October 2026 throughout 2027. With an overall estimate in the region of $40,000,000 -60,000,000, Radiant Modernism will be presented in different auction rooms, starting in London during Frieze Week, then travelling to Paris for Art Basel and subsequently to New York during its November Marquee Week, with further sales in 2027.
The Collection
Assembled privately over forty years and comprising nearly 600 works, Radiant Modernism stands out for its rarity, quality and the academic rigour underpinning its acquisition. Three principal strands can be identified within the collection: Pointillism, represented predominantly by Paul Signac; Symbolism, with a number of rare works by Odilon Redon; and Expressionism, represented by artists including Lyonel Feininger. Alongside these core movements, the collection also features important works by key figures such as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Flix Vallotton, Maurice Denis and Charles Thophile Angrand, among others. Together, these works form an eclectic yet scholarly selection, offering a distinctive testament to the depth of research and connoisseurship that shaped the collection and contributed to its unique character. Paul Signac stands out as his work is present across the collection in every medium - from painting to works on paper– offering a vertical and in-depth presentation of his artistic research.
Radiant Modernism also includes an important group of works by Josef Albers, spanning the 1940s through the 1970s. Together, they illustrate the breadth of the collection and highlight its in-depth exploration of colour across different artistic movements.
Exceptional oils by Paul Signac
Radiant Modernism presents a wide ranging selection of works by Signac, spanning painting, works on paper and prints, with three important oils being the highlights of the October and November Marquee Weeks in London, Paris and New York, respectively.
Renowned as a master of colour and light, Signac was equally a builder of artistic communities. His spirit of amiti made him a trusted friend, collaborator and advocate for some of the most important artists of his time. This commitment to artistic camaraderie was embodied in the Salon des Indpendants, the radical platform Signac helped champion, founded on artistic freedom and without juries or awards, where innovation and individuality could flourish.
Signac's experiments with Pointillism began several years earlier, after he was exposed to the ground-breaking paintings of his friend Seurat, who had begun, in a new and rigorous manner, to apply colour theory to the pictorial representation of the world. Signac immediately grasped the implications and potential of his friend's breakthrough ideas, and began developing his own interpretation of Pointillism. This was a process that involved much experimentation, and it was only in the late 1880s that he had truly reached what he considered a suitably strong yet independent style. This involved a slightly less formal approach to painting than his colleague used. Where Seurat strictly used opposing colours to bring out a new intensity in his works, Signac left much of his own choice of colour to aesthetics and instinct.
A hymn to the South of France, which Paul Signac loved and where he made his home, Sainte-Anne (Saint-Tropez) (estimate: 4,500,000-6,500,000), is a 1905 landscape showing the evening light caressing the trees, buildings and distant hills. The port of Saint-Tropez is situated in the lower centre of the picture, the bell tower being clearly visible and forming a silhouette against the turquoise sea. This painting, with its subtle treatment of light and vivid colours, was admired by the artist himself and his contemporaries, as it featured in a number of important early exhibitions of Signac's work, including his 1907 retrospective at the Galerie Bernheim-Jeune. The importance of Sainte-Anne is also reflected in its provenance: it was formerly in the collection of Gustave Fayet, one of the most important supporters of the avant-garde in the early 20th century, as well as an early patron of Post-Impressionism, particularly Paul Gauguin. The timing of the painting's presentation at auction is especially significant, underscoring its continued relevance within the current cultural zeitgeist. On 9 October, Fondation Louis Vuitton will open Gustave Fayet, Collector-Designer. Icons of Modern Art, while the Royal Academy of Arts in London will launch Painting the French Riviera on 2 October, an exhibition exploring how the Cte d'Azur captivated and inspired modern art's great innovators.
Sainte-Anne (Saint-Tropez) will be offered in the 20th/21st Century: London Evening Sale on 14 October 2026.
Saint-Cloud, painted in 1903 (estimate: €1,500,000-2,000,000) is a luminous example of the artist's mature Neo-Impressionist style. This oil on canvas depicts a view of Saint-Cloud, a village west of Paris. In it, Signac transforms some of the most common elements of nature into a brilliant composition of contrasting colours. Natural details such as the tall trees on the right corner are perfectly blended with the white horizon, transforming an everyday view into a richly chromatic study of light and atmosphere. With delicate and rare strokes, the artist creates multiple shades of blue, violet, pink, green, yellow, and orange tones, the scene emerges gradually from a collage of individual marks. Even though he is well-known for the scenery of the Mediterranean coast and its ports, particularly in Saint-Tropez, Signac continuously returned to the motifs of water and nature in the surroundings of Paris. In Saint-Cloud, the vertical structure of the trees contrasts with the openness of the distant view, while small, distinct touches of pigment animate the entire composition. The result is a landscape that appears to vibrate with light rather than remain static. This shift from observed nature toward a more subjective experience of colour was a key characteristic of Signac's mature work.
Saint-Cloud will be offered in the 20th/21st Century: Paris Evening Sale including Thinking Italian on 22 October 2026.
Saint-Briac, les balises (Opus 210), 1890, (estimate on request), is a very rare and important example of a Signac 'Opus' painting, dating from the high point of the Pointillist experiment in 1890. Belonging to a group of four seascapes Signac executed that summer, in which the artist consolidates his own idiom of Pointillism, this painting is the only one from the series remaining in private hands. The others are housed in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; the Fondation Rau pour le Tiers Monde, Zurich; and the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow.
The Opus paintings mark Signac's revolutionary breakthrough: the moment when his artistic research opened the way to Modernism and the historical avant-gardes. In these pivotal works, his vision moves away from Impressionism's fleeting portrayal of reality to a more subjective interpretation of the natural world. The surface of Saint-Briac, les balises, for instance, comprises thousands of glistening brushstrokes. Seascapes like this provided the perfect subject for Signac to explore and demonstrate his mastery of Pointillism. As a keen sailor, he was particularly observant of the moods of the water, often giving his works titles that refer to the winds or tides. Here, he shows the beacons at Saint-Briac in faultless detail, without letting the constraints of his Pointillism intrude on the subject itself. Highlighting the significance of this work, it was showcased in the acclaimed Radical Harmony exhibition at the National Gallery, London, in 2025-2026.
Saint-Briac, les balises will be offered in Christie's 20th Century Evening Sale in New York in November 2026.
Other London highlights – Josef Albers
Testifying to the wide-ranging selection comprised in Radiant Modernism, a selection of outstanding paintings by Josef Albers will also be offered in the 20th/21st Century: London Evening Sale on 14 October 2026: Study for Homage to the Square: Warm Silence from 1971 (estimate: 380,000-500,000) and R-I d-1 (1968; estimate: 250,000-350,000).
Painter, designer, teacher and theorist, Albers left behind an extraordinary body of work that transformed our understanding of the chromatic spectrum. From his early days at the Bauhaus, to his landmark treatise Interaction of Colour, his work had a profound impact upon future generations of artists. Assembled with connoisseurly vision, the works by the artist included in Radiant Modernism span twenty-five years of Albers' practice, capturing the precision and poetry that defined his oeuvre. Study for Homage to the Square: Warm Silence was previously owned by Lee V. Eastman, the celebrated lawyer and collector who represented artists including de Kooning and Albers himself. A connoisseur of the latter's oeuvre, Eastman acquired only the very best Homages, which sat in his collection alongside works by Picasso, Matisse and the Abstract Expressionists. He was also instrumental in organising Albers' career-defining retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York in 1971, where the striking all-red R-I d-1, a dazzling exposition of one of Albers' favourite colours, was also presented.
Giovanna Bertazzoni, Chairman Europe, and Keith Gill, Vice-Chairman 20/21, Christie's: “Radiant Modernism is a remarkable testament to what can be achieved through sustained scholarship, connoisseurship and a deeply personal engagement with art. Not only does the collection showcase rare and exceptional examples of late 19th- and early 20th-century artworks, but it also creates new dialogues among various modern artistic currents. As such, Radiant Modernism provides a unique look at the creativity, friendships, and intellectual exchange that shaped the art landscape of that time. To be entrusted with the sale of this landmark collection, and to be able to share it across London, Paris and New York, is a rare privilege.”
The three major Paul Signac paintings from Radiant Modernism, to be offered in London, Paris and New York this autumn, will be on view at Christie's Paris from 9 to 12 September 2026. Following this exhibition, Saint-Cloud will remain on public view at Christie's Paris until 22 September 2026.
Key highlights from Radiant Modernism – Signac to Albers will be offered in these upcoming sales:
LONDON
14 October 2026 – 20th/21st Century: London Evening Sale
16 October 2026 – Impressionist and Modern Works on Paper and Day Sale
PARIS
22 October 2026 – 20th/21st Century: Paris Evening Sale including Thinking Italian
23 October 2026 – Impressionist and Modern Art Day Sale
NEW YORK
November 2026 – 20th Century Evening Sale and Impressionist and Modern Art Day Sale
