Sale 1148, Lot 161 Raoul Dufy (1877 - 1953) Anémones Watercolor and gouache on paper Estimate: $40,000 - 60,000 Freddy and Regina Homburger were married 1939 in Geneva and moved to the United States in 1941. Having earned a medical degree from the University of Geneva in 1940, Freddy passed his U.S. medical examinations and worked as a Fellow at the Yale and Harvard Medical Schools. He, Regina (who was also called Gin) and an associate, Dr Peter Bernfeld, then founded the independent Bio-Research Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, concentrating on examining and evaluating the carcinogenic effects of tobacco. Besides his very intensive professional activities, Freddy was an accomplished watercolourist and a passionate aviator. He served as Honorary Consul for Switzerland in Boston from 1966 to 1986. Gin actively supported him during his whole career. Freddy and Gin's art collection began with works bought during their many trips abroad, especially to South America. They were passionate collectors, interested in many different areas of the arts. Guided by insatiable curiosity and eclectic good taste, they assembled a collection of Impressionist and Modern Art, Pre-Columbian Art, Southeast Asian and Indian Sculpture, Antiquities and Old Master drawings and prints. In 1950, Freddy read about the severe arthritis that was threatening Raoul Dufy's ability to paint. Freddy invited Dufy to come to Boston for treatment with a newly developed drug. Dufy accepted, replying that he was 'willing to put himself in the hands of a fellow artist'. The treatment was successful, allowing Dufy to continue painting for a number of years. A great mutual respect and friendship was forged and most of the Dufy paintings in the collection stem from this period. In 1957 the Homburgers inherited an impressive group of French 19th-century Impressionist paintings from Gin's mother, Mrs Thürlimann, but otherwise the collection is mainly the result of a shared lifelong interest in a wide range of art and a shared commitment to seeking new opportunities. Freddy died in September 2001. Gin followed him in January 2002. A portion of the sale proceeds will be used to establish the Freddy and Regina Homburger Endowment to be used for acquisitions at the Portland Museum of Art. 'The Homburgers entrusted their collection to the Portland Museum of Art for the last decade of their lives, and were very pleased to see the collection displayed when they stopped on their trips up to their summer home near Bar Harbor.' Daniel E. O'Leary, Director of the Portland Museum of Art. Back to top