# Long-lost $3M Georgia O’Keeffe painting buried in NYC apartment closet for 40 years hits auction block

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/long-lost-3m-georgia-okeeffe-painting-buried-in-nyc-apartment-closet-for-40-years-hits-auction-block/
- Published: 2026-11-05T12:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-05T12:27:49+00:00
- Original publisher: New York Post (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://nypost.com/2026/11/05/us-news/3m-georgia-okeeffe-painting-buried-in-nyc-apartment-closet-hits-auction-block/
- Topics: Art, Culture, World

## Key points

- A long-hidden O’Keeffe painting is estimated at $3 million.
- The work had been kept in a New York apartment closet for decades.
- It goes to auction on 17 November.

## Summary

A painting by Georgia O’Keeffe, valued at about $3 million, was found in the closet of her late aunt’s East Village apartment by Betsy, the aunt’s niece. The work, “Near Abiquiu, New Mexico”, had been hidden from view for nearly 40 years and is due to go to auction this month, bringing a previously unseen painting to public attention.

The aunt received the painting as a graduation gift in the 1960s; her mother bought it for $3,800 in 1963. It was put away in the 1980s after a visitor appeared to be paying it close attention, and was found in its original box beneath fur coats. Christie’s says its existence had been known only from a photograph taken in 1931; the 10-by-24-inch work will be auctioned on 17 November and displayed free at 20 Rockefeller Center from 7 to 17 November. Some proceeds will go to an educational institution, with a portion shared by Betsy and other relatives.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.