Those who know Jim Carrey as not just an actor but also an art buff will soon be able to take a peek at some of his favorite pieces. On July 25, Bonhams Los Angeles will offer select standout works from the star’s collection as part of its Modern Design | Art sale. Carrey rose to fame in the 1990s with his energetic slapstick performances in a diverse range of blockbuster comedies, including “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,” “The Mask” and “Dumb and Dumber,” but later showed his range in more dramatic films, including “The Truman Show” and “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” proving his versatility. All the while, he was collecting art and also creating it (more on that below).
“It’s been my excellent fortune to be surrounded by many of the finer things in life,” the actor said in a statement, “and I’m always gratified when it’s time to let them go so that others may enjoy them as well.”
Highlights of the design section of the Bonhams auction include a Cumulus Table in marble (2010) by Joris Laarman (B. 1979) from an edition of twenty (estimated $60,000-80,000); a 1971 armchair made of brass and steel designed by Philippe Hiquily (estimate: $20,000-30,000) with a console in collaboration with Jean-Claude Farhi created 1968 and executed 1989 (estimate: $20,000-30,000); and a mahogany and gilt bronze Maison Leleu’s Executive Desk from 1965 ($8,000-12,000). One rare item is a hand-woven hummingbird rug with silk and metallic wool thread designed by Alexander McQueen (estimate: $15,000-20,000).
Until now, not much was known about the actor’s art collection, which features some choice pieces. The two that will be offered at auction in L.A. include a lithograph of one of David Hockney’s iconic pools (estimate: $30,000-40,000); a painting by Kenny Scharf, Ice Mont, from 2014 (estimate: $10,000-20,000); and a series of eight printed plates by Robert Rauschenberg (estimate: $8,000-10,000). The auction will also include several photographs that reflect the actor’s musical tastes, including iconic images of The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix by photographers like Danny Lyon, Gered Mankowitz and Astrid Kirchherr.
As we saw with Vivienne Westwood’s auction at Christie’s, which eventually brought in £465,192,000 in London last month, auctions of items owned by notable people usually inspire enthusiasm from bidders, especially when it comes to celebrities. Their aura of notoriety enhances the symbolic value of the lots, validating the auction estimates, which are usually already higher than what they would be for similar lots not from such a provenance. This might be the reason for the relatively high estimate for the David Hockney, despite it being a lithograph.
Jim Carrey, Artist
Like many other celebrities, Carrey has shown his own art in recent years. The actor has been drawing and painting since a young age but only started to share some of his pieces in the 2010s. His artistic practice later veered into the realm of cartoon-like political drawings, which he first shared on Twitter (now X) in 2016. These drawings are a translation of the actor’s innate sarcasm yet connect with a long tradition of caricatures for targeted political satire. “Social media is a canvas for me,” the actor explained at a Sunday talk at Hollywood’s Roosevelt Hotel with art critic Jerry Saltz.
The art critic, who is usually quite picky, found Carrey’s “radical vulnerability” interesting, as it showed “our darker sides, the sick stuff that you have inside of you all day, and you put it out there for all to see.” Unfortunately, Bonhams won’t be offering any of Carrey’s pieces in the auction.
His versatility might be what led Carrey to create his first NFT experiment in 2022, Sunshowers, which aimed to capture the “miraculous regenerative potential” of being bathed in sunlight. The NFT was auctioned on SuperRare to raise money for the food insecurity nonprofit Feeding America, selling for 62,040 ETH (around $ 191,800 at the time) from a starting price of just $1.
