Petter Olsen is the Norwegian art collector and shipping heir who has recently filed for bankruptcy. He will be selling his large collection of Edvard Munch paintings.
Leif Petter, head of the Olsen bankruptcy estate, said that Olsen owed creditors 780,000,000 kroner ($75,000,000) and was selling his collection.
He confirmed an earlier Dagens Naeringsliv report on the Norwegian daily business newspaper by sending a text message to Bloomberg.
Olsen, once considered Norway’s wealthiest man, is now saddled with large debts.
His prized Munch Collection, described by him as the “largest private Munch Collection in Norway”, is up for auction.
Munch’s famous Scream, however, isn’t included in the collection.
Olsen sold one of the four versions of The Scream at Sotheby’s in New York in 2012 for an astounding $119.9 millions, which made it the most expensive art ever sold in auction.
Bloomberg reported that although the Munch museum in Oslo expressed an interest in purchasing parts of Olsen’s collection, financial constraints could prevent any possible purchase.
The museum wants the artworks, but we do not have enough money to purchase them.
There are no specifics about this upcoming sale.
Olsen has won an epic court case against his older brother
Petter Olsen is now 76 years old and a part of the Olsen family that owns Fred. Olsen & Co. According to the business magazine Kapital, he was one of Norway’s richest individuals in 1996 with a total net worth exceeding 4.5 billion Norwegian kroner.
After a few years, however, his wealth was eroded by failed investments in real estate, such as his ambitious museum at Munch’s birthplace and tax claims.
Olsen’s collection is deeply connected to the history of his family.
Thomas Fredrik Olsen was Edvard’s first patron and close friend.
Thomas Olsen purchased many important works by Munch, such as The Madonna or The Scream. The latter was hidden during World War II in a Norwegian barn to prevent Nazis from capturing Norway.
Petter Olsen’s bitter legal battle with his brother Fred Olsen over Munch works ended in 2001.
Fred, an entrepreneur and shipping magnate, wanted half the Munch pieces. They were valued at one billion kroners.
Petter won the battle and retained his collection.
Petter sold the Scream to Leon Black in 2012. The sale made international headlines, but now his remaining collection is attracting renewed interest.
Fred Munch sold the majority of his Munch collection for $29.5 millions in 2006. Two Munch works still hang in his Oslo house today.
Fred Olsen and Petter Olesen, despite their bitter family rivalry for decades, have left a lasting mark in Norway’s shipping and art industries.
Petter, while Fred concentrated on growing the business empire of their family, was dedicated to maintaining his father’s legacy by becoming a Munch patron.
The sale of one of Norway’s largest private Munch collections could signal the end of Olsen’s role as the family’s key custodians.
As new information becomes available, this post Bankrupt Norwegian Shipping heir Petter Ossen sells Munch art collection as a way to pay debts could be updated.
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