April 11 marked six months since Diane Keaton died. This week, Bonhams auction house announced the first—and perhaps definitive—sale of the late Annie Hall and Godfather star’s personal belongings, including her art and art collection, Hollywood ephemera, and of course, iconic wardrobe.
Keaton epitomizes a fading Hollywood cohort that flourished before artificial intelligence or even influencers, back when actors had barely shaken off the studio system. She possessed a range that moved effortlessly between comic aplomb and dramatic nuance. “To speak of her is to speak of instinct, an unerring visual and creative intuition that guided her across decades of artistic exploration,” Dorrie Hall, Keaton’s sister, said in a statement.
In its latest collaboration with global art advisory the Fine Art Group, Bonhams has organized the four-part, 550-lot sale to encompass this self-styled icon’s ranging practice. The sale thus “reflect[s] the breadth of her career in acting alongside her work as a designer, her eye as a curator, and her spirit as an artist,” Anna Hicks, the auction house’s head of private and iconic collection, told me over email.
Keaton’s copy of the Annie Hall script (est. $2,000 to $3,000). Photo courtesy of Bonhams.
Three of these four auctions will take place online, including the first, “Diane Keaton: Tailored and Timeless,” which will present over 200 of Keaton’s outfits and accessories from May 31 through June 9. Much like the wildly successful sale of 450 items formerly belonging to director David Lynch last June, many of the estimates throughout this Keaton auction feel impossibly low. One of the actor’s archetypal Ralph Lauren Purple Label houndstooth jackets, for instance, is estimated to sell for just $200 to $300. Here, fans can absolutely expect the hits, like hats, ties, and glasses evoking Keaton’s spirit.
On June 8, Bonhams will host a live auction titled “Architect of an Icon” in New York, selling 50 top-shelf items like a Gucci sequin skirt and beret Keaton wore to the 2021 LACMA gala (est. $2,000 to $3,000) and an original, untitled script for Annie Hall (est. $2,000 to $3,000).
Two more online sales based out of L.A.—”At Home with Diane”, and “Chapters of an Edited Life”—follow. The former will run June 1 through June 10, offering more than 150 furnishings and home goods from Keaton’s various properties, including her renowned industrial oasis in L.A.’s Sullivan Canyon. These include cement planters, couches, and a metal step ladder expected to achieve $1,000 to $1,500, its rungs stacked with Keaton’s books, a Keaton clock, a planter, and a hat.
Diane Keaton, Face Lift-Off (undated) mixed media collage (est. $400 to $600). Photo courtesy of Bonhams.
Finally, “Chapters of an Edited Life” will bring over 150 works of art, books, and other ephemera to market from June 1 through June 11. Some works are from Keaton’s collection, spanning artists such as Robert Rauschenberg, Ed Ruscha, Annie Leibovitz—and even Jack Nicholson. Keaton made a few herself, too. Her taste for for photography and the American West are also evident in collections like the 39 white monographs on artists including Georgia O’Keeffe, Richard Avedon, and Dorothea Lange that are all set to hit the block together. There, they’re expected to achieve $1,000 to $1,500.
The collection goes on view at Bonhams’s L.A. location on May 5 and in New York from May 29 through June 9.