Court battle for $13.6m slice of Gauguin deal

Paul Gauguin's Nafea Faa Ipoipo. Photo / Supplied

It was rumoured to be the world's most expensive painting, a Gauguin masterpiece bought by the Qatari royal family in a deal that had the art world agog.

Now a High Court battle has disclosed the secret dealings behind the sale, as a broker called "the Mick Jagger of art auctions" sues for the US$10 million ($13.6m) commission he says is rightfully his.

Simon de Pury claims there was a "gentleman's agreement" to pay him handsomely if he secured the sale of Nafea Faa Ipoipo (When Will You Marry?), a study of Tahitian women painted by Paul Gauguin in 1892.

The painting was sold by Ruedi Staechelin, a retired Sotheby's executive from Switzerland.

The sale was reported in 2015 as worth US$300m, making it the most expensive painting ever sold.

In fact, it was the second highest price paid for a work of art, going for the still considerable sum of US$210m after a series of meetings between de Pury and Guy Bennett, the former Christie's expert who purchases art on behalf of the Emir of Qatar as director of collections and acquisitions for the Gulf state's museums.

Bennett and de Pury first met to discuss a possible acquisition in 2012, the court heard. De Pury then approached Staechelin, an old schoolfriend, to ask if he had any interest in selling. Staechelin claims de Pury lured him to the table by saying the Qataris were willing to pay US$230m, but that this was "dishonesty" as de Pury knew the buyers would offer US$210m.

Staechelin's counsel, John Wardell QC, said there had been "a clear breach of fiduciary duty and all commission has been forfeited if any right ever existed".

De Pury claims that he put the US$230m figure to Bennett, but it was rejected due to the "changing tastes" of the Qataris.

The offer of US$10 million in commission was never formalised but that is standard practice in the higher reaches of the art world, according to Jonathan Cohen QC, counsel for de Pury.