A Man of Style

Courtesy Martine Franck/Magnum Photos

Saint Laurent with Bergé in 1977

Courtesy Sichov/Sipa

Pablo Picasso Mark Rothko Jackson Pollock Fernand Leger J Goya Matisse Barnett Newman YSL/Bergé Auction Fetches Double Its Estimate

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We did not assemble this collection for money. It was a very important part of our life. There were three planks to the Bergé-Saint Laurent relationship: first, our life together for 50 years (I met him in 1958); second, our professional lives, building up the entity Yves Saint Laurent and everything this entailed; and the collection. For me, the three are totally interlinked.

Did you always intend to sell the collection in Paris?

Oh, yes! Yves Saint Laurent and I are French, we spent our careers in France, and our base for development was Paris. So this is where the sale had to be, even though there’s no art market in Paris.

You tried to remedy that in 2001 by taking over Drouot, but French regulations scotched the deal.

The idea of transforming Drouot into a truly international auction house was a very good one. I judge the commissaires-priseurs [state-appointed auction officials] who blocked it very severely. Now Drouot is stagnating. When they claim that they have maintained the art market in Paris, it’s quite wrong. There’s no truly international market in Paris. The only important sale is going to be mine. And I shall be staging it at Christie’s and PBA, while otherwise I would have staged it at Drouot.

PBA is based in Paris with premises opposite Drouot, but you’ve also sold in Geneva and acquired a space in Brussels. Were these actions part of an overall strategy?

There was no strategy. Geneva is the usual place to sell jewelry. Brussels was an opportunity to take over a magnificent building. Brussels is wonderful! The auction business is doing very, very well, and on top of that, we’ve done something different by opening an art gallery, asking contemporary artists and designers to come and work here.

Are there operational differences between Brussels and Paris?

I can’t really say. I’m not involved in the day-to-day management. But what I can say is that there are plenty of art lovers in Belgium and that the Belgians have always been art collectors and connoisseurs and connoisseurs of contemporary art. They have always bought the art of their own era.

What’s been the high point for PBA so far?

The Bérès sale, of course! [Book dealer Pierre Bérès’s collection brought €35 million ($47 million) over six auctions.]

Does PBA bring you pleasure?

PBA is a small auction firm, but we’re doing very well. We’re among the leading French firms. I’m very pleased.

What does the firm give you in terms of personal satisfaction?

That’s different! Not a lot. I’ve enough on my plate with all my other activities, like this collection I’m selling.

Why did you choose the Grand Palais as the venue for the sale?

I like to open doors. I’ve been doing that all my life! In 1983 I showed Saint Laurent at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, where they had never exhibited a couturier, and I continued with YSL exhibitions in Beijing; at the Hermitage, in St. Petersburg; and so on. So the Grand Palais suits me. It has great style.

Did you and Yves Saint Laurent form the collection together?

Not always. But we always approved everything together. That’s the main thing. No, I am more responsible than Yves for the choices in the collection. To begin with, we bought plenty of things together: Art Deco, Brancusi, de Chirico. Afterward, well, Saint Laurent was someone who worked from dawn till dusk, liked to be alone, was an introvert and lived by himself with his dog. I’m not like that. So I went around the galleries and did the buying. But afterward I showed him everything, and he always agreed with me.

Did your tastes change over time?

No. Our tastes didn’t change much, but the collection was about seizing opportunities. Today I’m well aware that people who build up collections tell their adviser, "I need a big Rothko to put there!" I never asked for a big Rothko — or a little Picasso. It was more about coming across a Picasso. That’s how things happened.

Were you influenced by artists you met?

Just once, with Andy Warhol, because he was a friend and did Yves Saint Laurent’s portrait. Otherwise, no. As collectors, we were influenced solely by the vicomte and vicomtesse de Noailles.