The Late Great Prince of Chintz Makes an Unlikely Killing at Auction
When Sotheby’s unveiled the contents of interior design legend Mario Buatta’s auction, "Mario Buatta Prince of Interiors,” we were given a glimpse into the magical worlds he had conjured throughout his impressive career. Unlike similar auctions, which feature an average of 200 to 300 items, Buatta’s lot included nearly 1,000 pieces—furniture, decorative objects, and fine art—from his homes in New York and Connecticut. Between January 23 and 24th—during “one of the busiest weeks in the New York Market Calendar”—over 1,200 bidders competed for a piece of Buatta’s life and legacy.
While expectations of the auction were high, the two-day sale achieved more than two and a half times the estimate, with 99% of all items sold. A passionate collector, Buatta’s signature style was influenced by English country and a love of pattern and color. His Upper East Side apartment and historic gothic-style home in Thompson, Connecticut were a testament to his exuberance: rooms filled with pieces from his travels, British antiques, ceramics, and other decorative objects.
Outside of his own personal quarters, Buatta’s work can be found in the homes of everyone from Patricia Altschul to Mariah Carrey, though his legacy is much more than just the rooms he has created.
Buatta was driven by the belief that rooms should feel comfortable, lived-in, and a reflection of those who craft them; spaces that evolve and grow over time. Of his New York City apartment, Buatta once said: “My apartment today is full of things I've collected over the years. Everything here tells a story. Some of it is good, some of it is chipped and broken, but it's a collection.”
Highlights from the sale include an oil painting by Russian émigré artist Yury Annenkov (sold for $212,500), a silver and bamboo flatware service by Buccellati (28 bidders total), and a pair of anglo-Indian low tables (34 times its estimate). Matching chintz armchairs—examples of Buatta’s love of the floral fabric—were sold for $11,250; a Dodie Thayer pottery lettuce ware part-service made $60,000.
“We are absolutely thrilled at the phenomenal reaction to the Buatta Collection, which inspired bidders from around the globe to compete day and night to acquire a piece of the late designer’s aesthetic,” says Dennis Harrington, head of Sotheby’s English & European Furniture Department in New York. “These results prove that Mario Buatta’s love of antique furniture, rich colors and patterns, and beautiful objects is still relevant to 21st-century collectors and designers—a legacy of which he would be immensely proud.”
While the figures from the sale are impressive, it is the intrinsic value of each piece—items that brought Buatta as much joy to his heart as they did to his eyes—that led to the auction's success. “I don’t buy for investment,” Buatta once said. “I always tell clients, ‘Buy something because you like it or you need it.’ To me, an investment is stocks, bonds, or real estate. I’d rather look at a pair of candlesticks, a mirror, or a painting that gives me pleasure, that’s the return I get. Everything I have may be old, but I love it all. It’s the prose and poetry in my life.”
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