ESTÉE LAUDER chairman Leonard Lauder has donated a collection of art to New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art worth over $1 billion (£653 million). The extensive bequest includes 33 works by Picasso, 17 by Braque, 14 by Léger and 14 by Gris.
"Leonard's gift is truly transformational for the Metropolitan Museum," said Met director Thomas P Campbell. "Although the Met is unique in its ability to exhibit over 5,000 years of art history, we have long lacked this critical dimension in the story of modernism. Now, Cubism will be represented with some of its greatest masterpieces, demonstrating both its role as the ground-breaking movement of the 20th-Century and the foundation for an artistic dialogue that continues today. This is an extraordinary gift to our museum and our city."
