Christie's to Auction $2.8 Million USD Photo Collection of Former U.S. Ambassador

Christie’s is set to auction the photography collection of Trevor Traina, former U.S. ambassador to Austria, on October 3 in New York. The sale features works from postwar and contemporary masters like Diane Arbus, William Eggleston, Robert Frank, Nan Goldin, and Cindy Sherman, with estimates reaching up to $2.8 million. Eggleston’s Greenwood, Mississippi (Red Ceiling) 1973 alone could fetch up to $300,000 USD.

Traina, a San Francisco native and tech entrepreneur, started his career as a brand manager at Seagram’s before shifting to the art world, where he advised San Francisco’s Fine Arts Museums and UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. Nominated as ambassador by Donald Trump, Traina’s collection traces the evolution of photography from documentary roots to a recognized contemporary art form. Highlights include Robert Frank’s groundbreaking The Americans and Diane Arbus’s portraits of society’s fringes.

The collection reflects two major shifts: the rise of female photographers and the acceptance of color photography as art, despite early resistance from purists. Previously exhibited at San Francisco’s de Young Museum in 2012, Traina’s collection includes works that have fetched record prices at Christie’s, like Arbus’s Identical Twins print, which sold for $1.2 million USD in May.

Selected works will be on view at Christie’s Los Angeles from September 10-12 before the October auction. All auction lots will be presented on the blockchain with digital certificates of ownership.