Otto Gutekunst

Otto Charles Henry Gutekunst (1866 – 17 February 1947) was a British art dealer and collector, and a co-owner of P. & D. Colnaghi & Co. from 1894.

Early life

He was born in Stuttgart, Germany, the eldest son of Heinrich Gottlob Gutekunst, a German art dealer in Stuttgart, himself the son of an artist.^[1][2] HG's younger son Richard Gutekunst was also an art dealer, particularly in prints.^[2]

Career

In the 1890s, Gutekunst and Edmund Deprez formed a partnership as Deprez and Gutekunst, with a gallery in London's Charing Cross Road.^[1] In 1894, Gutekunst was taken into partnership by William McKay and became a co-owner of P. & D. Colnaghi & Co.^[1]

In 1947, his widow Lena sold Rubens' Venus supplicating Jupiter to Sir Alfred Lane Beit.^[3]

In 1947, his widow Lena gave Giovanni Ambrogio de Predis' Profile Portrait of a Lady to the National Gallery, London.^[4]

In 1950, the Saint Louis Art Museum acquired Rembrandt's Portrait of a Young Man from Gutekunst's collection for US$130,000, its most expensive purchase to date.^[5]

Personal life

In 1892, he married Lina Louise S Obach in London.^[6] In 1901, they were living in Streatham, London. In 1911, they were living in Marylebone, London, with her parents and five servants.^[7]

He retired to Switzerland and died there on 17 February 1947.^[8]