Whitechapel Gallery Auction Features Works by Cindy Sherman, Lucian Freud, Antony Gormley

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Whitechapel Gallery, which this year honours its 125th anniversary, has this week launched an online auction of works by artists whose careers have been shaped by the east London space. 

Held in partnership with Phillips until 17 March, the sale features works donated by artists and estates including Barbara Hepworth, Philip Guston, Cindy Sherman, Antony Gormley, Alfredo Jaar, Lucian Freud, Nicole Eisenman and Joy Gregory.

In a statement, Gilane Tawadros, director of Whitechapel Gallery, said: “Most of the works in this auction are connected to pivotal moments in the artists’ careers–first exhibitions, radical shifts in practice, landmark presentations. 

“Their generosity in donating these works is both deeply moving and critically important. It allows us not only to celebrate 125 years of artistic experimentation, but also to secure Whitechapel Gallery’s pioneering and risk-taking work for future generations.” 

The sale spans the gallery’s exhibition history, from post-war abstraction to contemporary global practice, and includes painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking and unique commissions. Proceeds from the auction will directly support the gallery’s exhibitions, commissions and participation programmes.

Notable works include a 1982 etching by Freud, whose work was shown by the gallery in 1993; Honeymoon (1992) by Gregory, whose ongoing survey has received wide acclaim and Interlocking Forms (1957) by Hepworth, whose 1954 exhibition was her first solo presentation in a London public gallery.

A 2023 drawing by Gormley will also go under the hammer. In a statement, the sculptor said: “Whitechapel Gallery gave me my first solo exhibition in 1981. I have been lucky enough to have a few more since then, but it was Whitechapel Gallery that offered me that first important opportunity to realise my ambitions as a young artist. It was a turning point in my life as an artist.”

Experience-based auction lots include lunch and studio visits with Ryan Gander and Jeremy Deller, and the chance to produce a bronze artwork under the guidance of Kabir Hussain.