CHICAGO, IL.- Leslie Hindman Auctioneers announced that Property from the Estate of Cole Porter will be included in the February 12-14, 2012 Fine Furniture and Decorative Arts auction. The forty-one lots include Continental and Asian furniture, Chinese ceramics, English silver, Baccarat and Steuben stemware, and other fine table wares. A pair of Italian bergères come from Porter’s Manhattan library, which the decorator Billy Baldwin famously outfitted with brass étagères fabricated by P.E. Guerin. The property comes to the auction house from the living trust of Porter’s first cousin’s daughter, Louise Cole Schmitt.

Cole Porter was born on June 9, 1891 in Peru, Indiana, the only child of a well-established family. Porter’s talent and affinity for music became evident at a young age and was central to his studies at Worcester Academy and Yale University. After his education at Yale, he moved to Paris where he kept a luxurious apartment. It was there that he met his wife Linda Lee Thomas and received his first commission for music.

Cole Porter’s brilliance as a composer and songwriter, in particular for Broadway musicals, made an indelible impression in the history of American popular music.
The sophistication evident in his musical compositions carries over to his masterfully cultivated collection of furnishings.

Cole Porter passed away in 1964. He is buried with his wife in his hometown of Peru, Indiana and his property has withstood descent through the family for more than forty-five years. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers is honored to conduct the sale of these objects in memory of one of twentieth century music’s greatest luminaries. Preview exhibition for the sale begins February 8. For more information please contact Corbin Horn at 312.280.1212.

For three decades, Leslie Hindman Auctioneers has been an industry leader combining recognition as one of the nation’s foremost fine art auctioneers with a global base of buyers. Founded in 1982, sold to Sotheby’s in 1997 and reopened in 2003, Leslie Hindman has remained a constant force behind high profile auctions of everything from contemporary paintings and fine jewelry to French furniture and rare books and manuscripts, and always achieves the highest prices while maintaining the highest levels of integrity and
customer service.