After years of talks, Hirschfeld's multimillion-dollar art collection goes to Historical Society

Gwen Everett

The New York Historical Society began courting real estate mogul Elie Hirschfeld, president of Hirschfeld Properties, eight years ago for his multi-million dollar art collection.

That day Louise Mirrer, president of NYHS, met Hirschfeld in his Manhattan apartment. Works from the collection, including ones by Andy Warhol, Georgia O’Keeffe and Mark Rothko, decked the walls and at some points the floor, Mirrer said. 

After multiple visits in which Mirrer went to Hirschfeld’s Hamptons home, and Hirschfeld and his family to the society — the collection is now going to the NYHS.  

For some with ultra-valuable collections of work, the auction circuit is the go-to place for their art. Sotheby’s will auction off the collection of the late Ambassador and financier Felix Rohatyn and his wife, the auction house said Thursday.

But those who want to guarantee their works can be in public view, and don’t care to monetize, look to museums. NYHS stood out to Hirschfeld because whereas museums like The Whitney or The Metropolitan Museum of Art might break up the collection, NYHS would display it in full, he said. 

Hirschfeld’s collection includes twelve works each worth more than $1 million, he said. That’s even though Hirschfeld, who owns a real estate portfolio worth $2 billion, does not buy art to trade, he said. In fact, Hirschfeld said he has never sold a piece.

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Philanthropist Elie Hirschfeld Donates Art Collection to the New York Historical Society

“The art, dating from the mid-19th through the 21st centuries, includes works by artists from movements associated with New York City like the Ashcan School, Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art as well as international artists with a feeling for the city… It is a significant bulwark for the New-York Historical Society’s collection.”

Elie and his wife Sarah Hirschfeld have gifted 130 art works to the institution, significantly broadening the scope of its collection. “Elie and Sarah Hirschfeld Gallery, Scenes of New York City,” is the newly dedicated space, which will showcase a rotating selection of the works.

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See New York Through the Eyes of David Hockney, Andy Warhol, and Georgia O’Keeffe

New York City has had a terrible few months — among the roughest in its history. But, as a reminder that this pandemic, too, will pass, and the city will endure, the New-York Historical Society is planning an exhibition of artworks depicting this metropolis, drawn from the collection of Elie and Sarah Hirschfeld, for next year. The Hirschfelds have donated 130 paintings, works on paper, and sculptures. There are works like Norman Rockwell’s Gramercy Park, ca. 1918, which captures a moment from his childhood; David Hockney’s View from the Mayflower Hotel, New York (Evening), 2002, that immortalizes the storied hotel overlooking Central Park which has since been replaced by a very expensive condominium; and Georgia O’Keeffe’s Study for “Brooklyn Bridge”, 1949, drawn around when she left the city to live in New Mexico. It includes works by 82 artists not currently represented in New-York Historical’s collection, such as Stuart Davis, Willem de Kooning, Lyonel Feininger, Fernand Léger, John Marin, Reginald Marsh, Mark Rothko, and Everett Shinn, as well as pieces from Marc Chagall, Isabel Bishop, Andy Warhol, among others.

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130 VISIONS OF NEW YORK CITY, AS SEEN BY HOCKNEY, O’KEEFFE, LAWRENCE, CHAGALL AND MORE

When an artist looks at New York City, what do they see? A new collection gifted to the New-York Historical Society provides a glimmer of an answer by way of David Hockney, Jacob Lawrence, Edward Hopper, Georgia O’Keeffe, Andy Warhol, Marc Chagall, Isabel Bishop and more.

Culled under the title “Scenes of New York City,” the works come as a donation from art collectors Elie and Sarah Hirschfeld. As revealed by the museum Tuesday, the collection comprises 130 pieces dating back to the mid-19th century. Threaded together by a shared focus on New York City’s buildings, parks, bridges, landmarks and people, the artworks will be presented in a major exhibition planned for fall 2021.

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A valentine to New York City, in a gift of 130 urban scenes by Chagall, O'Keeffe, Hockney and other artists

Philanthropic couple’s promised donation to New-York Historical Society boosts collection’s 20th-century holdings

The New-York Historical Society today announced a promised gift of 130 works depicting New York City scenes, including vivid examples by Norman Rockwell, Marc Chagall, Robert Henri, Jacob Lawrence, Georgia O’Keeffe, Louise Nevelson and David Hockney, from the philanthropists Elie and Sarah Hirschfeld.

The art, dating from the mid-19th through the 21st centuries, includes works by artists from movements associated with New York City like the Ashcan School, Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art as well as international artists with a feeling for the city. With its robust representation of 20th-century artists, it is a significant bulwark for the New-York Historical Society’s collection, which is known more for Colonial portraiture, Hudson River School landscapes and 19th-century genre painting than later works of art, the institution says. 

“Our collection will be very much amplified by the gift,” Louise Mirrer, president and chief executive of the New-York Historical Society, said in an interview. “There’s a visual experience of history that we provide with our Hudson River paintings but don’t provide for the 20th century–that’s the most dramatic way that this collection will alter the picture for our visitors.”

New-York Historical Society Gifted Big Apple-Themed Art Collection

Almost four decades ago, New York City real-estate executive Elie Hirschfeld came across a painting that spoke to him, a work by Thomas Hart Benton that depicted a street scene in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village neighborhood.

Mr. Hirschfeld acquired the piece, and that sparked what became a continuing obsession—to collect art that tells the story of New York, past and present, in all its vibrant and quirky glory.

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New-York Historical Society Gifted Big Apple-Themed Art Collection

Real-estate executive Elie Hirschfeld calls the works ‘more than just art,’ including pieces from David Hockney, Georgia O’Keeffe and Jacob Lawrence

Almost four decades ago, New York City real-estate executive Elie Hirschfeld came across a painting that spoke to him, a work by Thomas Hart Benton that depicted a street scene in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village neighborhood. Mr. Hirschfeld acquired the piece, and that sparked what became a continuing obsession—to collect art that tells the story of New York, past and present, in all its vibrant and quirky glory. Now, Mr. Hirschfeld and his wife, Sarah Hirschfeld, are donating the 130-piece collection to the New-York Historical Society, saying it is time to share it with the city as a whole.

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Elie Hirschfeld Purchases Trump Drawing at auction.

President Donald Trump has bought a sketch of the Empire State Building drawn by Trump for $16,000 at an auction.

Elie Hirschfeld, president of Hirschfeld Properties, purchased the 12-by-9-inch black marker depiction of the iconic New York City skyscraper at an auction in California and online last week. It was created by Trump for a charity auction in Florida during the time he opened his Mar-a-Lago estate as a private club in 1995.

Julien's Auctions says the piece signed by Trump went for less than $100 the first time it was sold.

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Elie Hirschfeld Curates The Energy and Beauty of Manhattan in his Art Collection

Some may know Elie Hirschfeld primarily as a renowned New York real estate developer and philanthropist – but Hirschfeld also has a passion for the arts – which he has enjoyed cultivating through collecting and loaning works of art that are often focused on the beauty of his home city of New York.

"I am always pleased to share my work with other museums and galleries and although each exhibition addresses its own theme, collectively the works that feature New York City as a theme speak to the greater story of the culture, vibrancy and expression alive in of New York. This theme is a dynamic one - changing and consistently relevant in new ways,” said Elie Hirschfeld.

Earlier this year, Mr Hirschfield expanded his art collection with the acquisition of an original work by Mr. Keith Haring, called Radiant Baby. Elie Hirschfeld and his wife Sarah Hirschfeld have always admired the, energy and diversity that continually surge through every street, avenue, park and subway of New York City. He has an enduring appreciation for the work of Keith Haring, a groundbreaking artist that is associated with transformative times in the city.

Radiant Baby was created in the mid-1980s on a steel New York City subway sign in Bowery station. The Bowery Street Station was near the center of the 70s downtown art scene and the metro was no stranger to graffiti; artists' tags were placed on every surface, nook and cranny. Keith Haring's career began in the underground metro system below the city of New York where he used chalk to tag the Subway cards and signs. The station sign was tagged by Haring who used two of his most celebrated tags "Radiant Baby" and "Aids Alligator."

Last year, Hirschfeld lent Georgia O'Keeffe's 1949 drawing of Brooklyn Bridge to the Georgia Museum of Art's exhibition "Icon of Modernism: Representing the Brooklyn Bridge, 1883-1950" and Jacob Lawrence's 1938 Harlem Diner to the Musee du Quai Branly's fall exhibition last year, entitled "The Color Line: African American Artists and Civil Rights in the United States" in Paris.

The president of Hirschfeld Properties LLC , Elie Hirschfeld has become one of Manhattan's most ardent collectors of American art. Hirschfeld's private collection, includes approximately 200 19th and 20th century and contemporary original works by major figures such as Frank Stella, Andy Warhol, Mark Rothko, Alexander Calder, and Stuart Davis, with a strong focus on art depicting and inspired by New York City.

ELIE HIRSCHFELD APPOINTED TO SERVE ON ISRAEL BONDS NATIONAL CAMPAIGN ADVISORY COUNCIL

June 13, 2017 – New York, NY – Today, Elie Hirschfeld announced his appointment to the Israel Bonds National Campaign Advisory Council. He is humbled by the appointment to the Council (www.israelbonds.com). The organization typically sells over $USD One Billion in bonds annually in the United States to develop every aspect of Israel’s economy.

Elie Hirschfeld said, “Israel has always been part of me — I was born in Tel Aviv.  With my increased commitment to the Jewish state and Israel Bonds, and my new position on the Council, I look forward to introducing my business colleagues and friends to Israel Bonds and to joining me in becoming stakeholders in one of the world’s most resilient economies.”

Development Corporation for Israel, established in 1951 and commonly known as Israel Bonds, is a FINRA-member broker dealer and underwriter for securities - Israel bonds - issued by the State of Israel in the United States. For the past four years, annual U.S. sales have exceeded $1 billion. Prior to 2011, annual U.S. sales averaged approximately $600 million. Worldwide sales since the first Israel bonds were issued in 1951 have exceeded $40 billion.

For Israel, having the support of Israel Bonds - a reliable and independent financial pipeline - is an invaluable and strategic national resource, especially since Bonds clients have proven time and again that when Israel is in the midst of a crisis, they do not walk away. Investors value Israel’s impeccable record of having never defaulted on payment of principal or interest on Israel bonds.

Retail clients – individuals and Jewish organizations – comprise approximately 65 percent of worldwide sales. The remaining 35 percent encompasses institutional investors, including states, municipalities, financial institutions, corporations, foundations and others.

Elie Hirschfeld’s proven expertise and success in the dynamic commercial and residential real estate and development markets in New York City, coupled with his passion for Jewish causes and the mission of Israel Bonds make him an ideal match to serve on the Israel Bonds National Campaign Council.

About Elie Hirschfeld

Elie Hirschfeld serves as President of Hirschfeld Properties, LLC, a leading New York-based real estate development firm. Under the leadership of Elie Hirschfeld, Hirschfeld Properties has engaged in the development or ownership of some of the most renowned office buildings, hotels, multi-family residential buildings, parking facilities and retail projects in New York City. It has developed projects such as luxury residential towers Park Avenue Plaza, The Gotham and The Exchange, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Hotel Pennsylvania, New York's first open-air parking garages, Manhattan Mall and the Sports Club LA Building.

Contact: Jackie Lucas 1-978-255-1159 Jackielucas@bridgeviewmarketing.com ###

Elie Hirschfeld Celebrates New York Academy of Sciences 200 Year Anniversary

Earlier this month, Elie Hirschfeld and his wife Sarah attended the Gala 200 Year Anniversary celebration in honor of the New York Academy Of Sciences (www.nyas.org). Mr. Hirschfeld is noted as a distinguished guest by the Academy, and is committed to helping advance the mission of this important institution. Some 15 Nobel Prize winners were in attendance, including several of Sarah’s colleagues from The Rockefeller University.

The New York Academy of Sciences is the world's nexus of scientific innovation in the service of humanity. For nearly 200 years the Academy has brought together extraordinary people working at the frontiers of discovery and has promoted vital links between science and society. One of the oldest scientific organizations in the United States, and an organization Mr. Hirschfeld has been a long-time supporter of, the Academy has become not only a notable and enduring cultural institution in New York City, but also one of the most significant organizations in the international scientific community.

Elie Hirschfeld said, “I am passionate about contributing to organizations like the New York Academy of Sciences, which have an enduring commitment to advancing discoveries and innovations that improve everyone’s well-being around the world. It was an honor to be listed as a distinguished guest, and at the recent Gala, it was an absolute pleasure to be in the company of so many individuals that are achieving so much, through their journeys in striving to elevate what is possible in the arena of scientific advancement.”

Throughout its history, the Academy's Membership has featured leaders in science, business, academia, and government, including U.S. Presidents Jefferson and Monroe, Thomas Edison, Louis Pasteur, Charles Darwin, Margaret Mead, and Albert Einstein.

Today, the Academy President's Council includes 30 Nobel Laureates as well as CEOs, philanthropists, and leaders of national science funding agencies. The Academy numbers over 20,000 Members in 100 countries, and Elie Hirschfeld is honored to be a contributor to this important institution’s ongoing efforts in scientific discovery, and making the world a better place through innovation and scientific exploration.

Residential Real Estate Continues to Drive Growth and New Opportunity in New York City

Elie Hirschfeld has been a leader and visionary driver within the highly competitive New York City Real Estate market for decades. This market is one of the most dynamic and profitable in the world, and few know it better than Mr. Hirschfeld. Elie Hirschfeld was recently invited to participate as an expert presenter at the Titans of Business event produced by Haute Living, on April 28, 2017. The event featured the leaders dominating the residential real estate market in New York City, including Don Peebles, Billy Macklowe, Mitchell Moinian, Bruce Eichner and Michael Stern in addition to Mr. Hirschfeld.

At the event, Mr. Hirschfeld noted his inventory of luxury free market rentals in Tribeca, the Village, Sutton Place, the Upper East Side and other highly desirable neighborhoods throughout the City. As the free market apartments come up for renewal, leaders in this industry explore and compare the luxury for sale market against the luxury for rent market.

This in combination with several other approaches to market analysis, helps hone their understanding of how a prospective renter or the renewal of the current renter might proceed themselves in the market in the alternatives of buying versus renting.

Real Estate developers also rely on the brokerage community to rent units and this provides another opportunity to learn from the market activity and expand their continually growing perspectives of the market. If local buyers or renters were to disappear, foreign regions cannot come to the rescue – this market is highly local in terms of its drivers, and influences.

Interestingly, there are many luxury rental tenants, who believe they save a great deal of money, rather than buying. In addition, many tenants have their home rental costs paid by their local employer, who certainly wouldn't buy them an apartment.

Mr. Elie Hirschfeld has been a leader in this exciting industry through many ups and downs of the global, regional and local markets and has studied key industries that real estate intersects with and is impacted by, on an ongoing basis.

His understanding of this fast-moving, complex industry, combined with his talent and vision have positioned him as a knowledgeable source for industry groups such as Haute Living and the Titans of Business.

Elie Hirschfeld Adopts A Portion of New York’s Grand Central Parkway

Adopting a section of New York’s Grand Central Parkway is just one example of the consistent community giving that characterizes Elie Hirschfeld. Mr. Hirschfeld is a leading New York City based real estate developer with a deep love for the cityscape and surrounding landscape. The section of the roadway that is sponsored by Hirschfeld Properties, is the span of the Grand Central Parkway at Exit 23, at Cross Island Parkway. This generous contribution to the beautification and maintenance of New York’s infrastructure was done through the Adopt-a-Highway program. The program is designed for New Yorkers and businesses to demonstrate their city pride and support efforts to clean and preserve the city’s roadways for everyone’s enjoyment.

As a long-time New York developer and resident, Hirschfeld believes the roadways play an important role in welcoming visitors to New York and they should reflect the city accordingly. By supporting the maintenance and care for roads in this way, Elie Hirschfeld also hopes to raise awareness to the issues of city preservation and safe roadways.

“Our roadways are the gateways and the welcome which visitors experience on the way to our great city. The roadways carry an important role in the first impression that visitors have of our city. So, I believe it is right to make them the best they can be,” said Elie Hirschfeld.

Hirschfeld stays consistently involved in a wide variety of community giving projects and various events and fundraisers that make the New York community a better place. He recently ran the United Airlines NYC Marathon on behalf of two organizations; the Elie Hirschfeld Foundation and Team for Kids.

ELIE HIRSCHFELD’S COMMENTS ILLUMINATE NEW YORK CITY TITANS OF BUSINESS PANEL

Hirschfeld Properties’ spectacular Riverside South development is a model of Manhattan real estate luxury. Renowned New York developer Elie Hirschfeld offered informed insights on the city’s luxury real estate rental and buyers’ market at the New York City Titans of Business panel on April 22 at the Core Club in Midtown.

Originally Posted: https://www.downtownmagazinenyc.com/elie-hirschfeld-titans-business-panel/

Elie Hirschfeld pointed out that while there are great customer bases in the foreign and broader American markets, New York business remains rooted in the local market.

“If the local buyer/renter disappears, we will not be saved by any foreign region,” said the iconic New York real estate luminary.

“First, the Metro New York City market; second, the American market, and only last, can we count on the foreign consumer.”

Hirschfeld, second from right, led a panel of top New York developers.

Elie Hirschfeld‘s comments during a panel which included such prominent New York business names as real estate entrepreneur, Don Peebles, Billy Macklowe, founder of Macklowe Properties, developer, Mitchell Moinian, and Michael Stern, CEO of the JDS Development Group.

Elie Hirschfeld is the President of Hirschfeld Properties which has developed such visionary projects as luxury residential towers Park Avenue Plaza, The Gotham and The Exchange, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Hotel Pennsylvania, New York’s first open-air parking garages, Manhattan Mall and the Sports Club LA Building.

His long record of accomplishment in the field gave him a particularly insightful perspective on the topic of the workings luxury real estate market in New York City.

“We have an inventory of luxury free market rentals in Tribeca, the Village, Sutton Place, Upper East side and other areas throughout the City,” he revealed.

“As the free market apartments come up for renewal we explore the luxury for sale market against the luxury for rent market. This helps us understand how a prospective renter or the renewal of the current renter might proceed themselves in the market in the alternatives of them buying or them renting.”

And while he remains committed to the local market as his primary focus, Elie Hirschfeld does not dismiss the importance of foreign capital to the industry.

“As for foreign markets, it is no longer primarily, China, but DOES continue to be Asian, Indian, and the Middle East,” he pointed out.

“There is fair amount of money migrating under radar and freely from Russia, Ukraine, the Stans (Kazakstan, Uzbekistan), the Middle East and Asia.”

Elie Hirschfeld‘s influence and insights into the New York real estate market are well known and heavily sought by peers who include President Donald Trump who is both a friend and business partner.

For more information on the New York Real Estate market go to hirschfeldnyc.com

ELIE HIRSCHFELD: GREG LEMOND STILL RIDING HIGH FOR ABUSED MEN

Giants collided when one of the greatest athletes in American history, Greg LeMond  visited in the Fifth Avenue home one of New York’s premier developers in Manhattan, Elie Hirschfeld on April 22! Towering New York real estate developer and philanthropist, Hirschfeld, is also a premier triathlete. He has also long been a fan and admirer of three-time Tour de France Champion Greg LeMond.

The two first met when Hirschfeld, 67, competed in the 1995 World Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii where LeMond served as a commentator for NBC.

Today, Hirschfeld is still competing and winning among his age group in triathlons and LeMond is breaking new barriers in sports technology.

“Greg is the epitomy of excellence — not only in sports, but in technology and humanity,” said Hirschfeld.

LeMond is now heading LeMond Composites, a company that developed lightweight carbon fiber materials originally used to produce faster racing bikes, but has now expanded to offer new solutions in transportation, infrastructure and renewable energy!

Read The rest of the story here ELIE HIRSCHFELD: GREG LEMOND STILL RIDING HIGH FOR ABUSED MEN