Marc Rich

MR has died yesterday. I saw him only once in Zug late '80. Already a legend ( and US fugitive ) then , but apart from trading community relatively unknown to wider audience. He was regular in simple Italian restaurant we were also visiting quite often. He ate alone at his table, tall in expensive suit and huge cigar ( Churchill I suppose).
Year before I visited his office in Zug centre. Sleek modern building. I remember being fascinated how his employers used their Amex cards to get access to the building. In 2000 or 2001 I was negotiating with his traders deal that went wrong and they were loosing huge amount of money every day. After I didn't budge to their demands they have send one of his executives who was rumoured to have stolen so much money from him, enough to buy small Caribbean island ( that guy was recently in press over divorce case that made legal history here) and with whom I had probably strangest meeting in my life over tea in Dorchester. It was clear then that glory days of Marc Rich commodity trader were gone. Very soon after that his company went bust.
Yesterday was day for oligarchs (dead or alive). After work I met C. in Franco'sfor cigar, coffee and news catch up when he invited me to see Phillips contemporary art evening sale. Owner is his best mate so I said why not plus was keen to see how would P do after Christies successful sale earlier in the week. There were 27 works for sale with Basquiat
Three Pontificators as highlight (particularly after Christies ). However all big names were sold bellow lower estimate or in-between (Basquiat didn't manage lower one). What was success were cheaper (read £40-100k) works mostly fresh from the easel. They were nice works in decorative sense of the word, monochromatic abstracts bought mostly by the women in audience, 25-45 age group, well dressed alone or with much older man, who are now after jewellery and haute couture in affordable art. There much more interesting stuff in contemporary art today, but you can't hang that on the walls of One Hyde Park. I can't wait to see the rip offs at next year's Affordable Art Fair. Real buyers (who picked up pricier works) were hiding behind the telephones but as said they were not excited by the offer. Gem for me was Cindy Sherman's 1979 Untitled Still that went for £300k (higher estimate was £80k). It is B&W photo but unusual for the period as she is in the shade so you don't see the face.
And the oligarch? C. has introduced me after the auction but as I don't speak any Russian we couldn't talk too much. C. and he sailed off quietly in Bentley that was waiting in front while I walked in the rain back to my office. Yes rich are different from the rest of us.