American West art masterpieces from a billionaire Koch brother head to auction

Billionaire Bill Koch’s vast collection of iconic American West artwork is set to hit the auction block at Christie’s, with an expected haul of at least $50 million. The “Visions of the West” sale will unfold in New York over two sessions beginning January 20, with final bidding concluding at noon the following day.

The collection showcases masterpieces by legendary Western artists Frederic Remington, Charles Marion Russell, and Albert Bierstadt, whose vivid depictions of cowboys, Native Americans, and frontier landscapes have profoundly shaped America’s collective imagination of the Wild West.

“What is out West? What is over the horizon?” reflected Tylee Abbott, head of Christie’s American Art Department. “It goes on to embody the American spirit.” Abbott noted that interest in Western art remains robust as new audiences continue to discover the region’s rich cultural heritage and mythology.

Koch, whose brothers David and Charles were prominent conservative donors, developed his passion for Western art during his formative years. “I was born and raised in Kansas and spent childhood summers working on my father’s ranches in Montana and Texas,” Koch explained in a statement. He described himself as “a child of the American Plains,” deeply influenced by the Western artwork that adorned his childhood home and the frontier tales he absorbed growing up.

The auction’s centerpiece includes an impressive array of 16 sculptures by Remington, alongside his painting “Coming to the Call,” which Christie’s estimates will fetch between $6 million and $8 million. Both small and large versions of Remington’s iconic “Bronco Buster” bronze sculpture will also be available to bidders.

Russell’s masterpiece “The Sun Worshippers” carries a projected price tag of $4 million to $6 million, while Bierstadt’s luminous landscapes depicting mountains and plains round out the collection’s highlights.

Michael Clawson, executive editor of Western Art Collector magazine, believes the region’s distinctive aesthetic continues to captivate first-time viewers. “When you come here, there is something about the light, the atmosphere, the colors,” said Clawson, a Phoenix native. He emphasized that Western art, which traces its roots to the early 19th century, remains vibrant today as younger collectors discover the genre and contemporary artists continue to reinvigorate it.

The Western states have experienced remarkable demographic and economic growth in the 21st century. Arizona, Utah, and Nevada have each gained well over a million residents since 2000. Economic prosperity has followed this population surge, with median household income in the West rising dramatically from $58,000 in 2014 to nearly $93,000 in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

The scale of the Christie’s auction positions it as potentially one of the most significant Western art sales in recent memory, likely to draw collectors from across the United States. When asked about his motivation for selling the collection, Koch offered simply, “It is time to pass along these pieces.”

This sale represents more than just a transfer of valuable artworks; it marks the circulation of cultural artifacts that have defined America’s understanding of its frontier past. The images created by Remington, Russell, and Bierstadt helped construct the mythology of the American West—a mythology that continues to resonate in popular culture and national identity.

For serious collectors and institutions, the auction presents a rare opportunity to acquire museum-quality pieces from one of the most comprehensive private collections of Western art. The sale also reflects the enduring appeal of frontier imagery in American art markets, even as contemporary perspectives on Western expansion and settlement have grown more nuanced and critical.

As these iconic pieces find new homes, they will continue to shape how future generations visualize and interpret the complex history of the American West.