I’m not in Steve Wynn’s league, but I’ve definitely damaged some of my own art (think dropping it on the ground, putting tape over the corner of something and watching the painting peel off when the tape is removed, and the occassional scuff mark.) So – it was with horror (and a gret deal of sympathy) that I read Nora Ephron’s amazing story of watching Steve Wynn accidently put his elbow through Le Reve – a Picasso painting that Wynn owns that he had just agreed to sell to Steven Cohen for $139 million.
Now – that’s throwing an elbow that even Charles Barkley would be proud of. Wynn was apparently incredibly gracious – merely exclaiming “Oh shit. Look what I’ve done. Thank God it was me.” While I would have substituted “fuck” for “oh shit”, I’d like to hope I would have had the same calm reaction.
The New Yorker had a good interview with Wynn on this. He’s decided to keep the painting. In the face of $139 million and an incredible Picasso, it appears that Wynn kept his cool the whole way through. Wow.