Tate Celebrates Gift of 'Monumental' Joan Mitchell Triptych from US Billionaire

Tate Modern has announced its most significant single donation in more than half a century, a monumental triptych by the American abstract expressionist Joan Mitchell that she named after her German shepherd dog, Iva.

- Esther Addley

The 6-metre long work, painted at the height of Mitchell's career in 1973, was given to Britain's national art collection by the billionaire Miami real estate magnate Jorge M. Pérez and his wife Darlene. The artwork had been displayed in their bedroom, they said, until they were persuaded by a two-year "conversation" with Maria Balshaw, the Tate's director, to donate it. "She's a good saleswoman," joked Pérez.

Balshaw said the Mitchell triptych was the single most significant gift to the central London gallery since Mark Rothko donated nine large murals in 1969. Its value has not been revealed, although a smaller work by Mitchell sold for $27m in 2023. Pérez described it as "priceless." "I mean, what's the value of Guernica?" he said.

The work will hang next to the gallery's Rothko room, where five of his murals are displayed, and Pérez said the two artists' paintings "form an incredible partnership. They just talk to each other."