Editing David Geffen (section)

=== Art collection ===
Geffen is a keen collector of American artists' work, including [[Jackson Pollock]], [[Mark Rothko]] and [[Willem de Kooning]]. According to the chief curator at the [[Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles|Museum of Contemporary Art]] in Los Angeles, [[Paul Schimmel]]: "There's no collection that has a better representation of post-war American art than David Geffen's."<ref name="autogenerated1" />

In October 2006, Geffen sold two paintings by [[Jasper Johns]] and a [[Willem de Kooning|De Kooning]] from his collection for a combined sum of $143.5&nbsp;million.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Vogel |first=Carol |date=2006-10-12 |title=Works by Johns and de Kooning Sell for $143.5 Million |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/12/arts/design/12geff.html |access-date=2020-02-14 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> On November 3, 2006, ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported that Geffen had sold [[Jackson Pollock|Pollock]]'s 1948 painting ''[[No. 5, 1948]]'' from his collection for $140&nbsp;million (£73.35&nbsp;million) to Mexican financier [[David Martinez (businessman)|David Martinez]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Vogel |first=Carol |date=2006-11-02 |title=A Pollock Is Sold, Possibly for a Record Price |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/02/arts/design/02drip.html |access-date=2020-02-14 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Martinez is the founder of London-based Fintech Advisory Ltd, a financial house that specializes in buying [[Developing countries' debt|Third World debt]]. The sale made ''No. 5, 1948'' the [[List of most expensive paintings|most expensive painting]] ever sold (outstripping the $134&nbsp;million paid in October 2006 for [[Gustav Klimt]]'s portrait ''[[Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I]],'' purchased by cosmetics heir [[Ronald Lauder]]).<ref>{{Cite news |author=Nigel Reynolds |date=2006-11-03 |title=Pollock world's most expensive painting |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1533200/Pollock-worlds-most-expensive-painting.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1533200/Pollock-worlds-most-expensive-painting.html |archive-date=January 12, 2022 |access-date=2020-02-14 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

Wealth-X reported in June 2013 that Geffen owns the most valuable private art collection in the world, and estimated its worth at $1.1B at the time.<ref>{{cite news |date=June 29, 2013 |title=Private Wealth: Geffen's Art Collection Tops In Value |url=http://www.wealthx.com/articles/2013/private-wealth-geffens-art-collection-tops-in-value/ |website=Wealthx.com}}</ref>

In February 2016, Bloomberg News reported that Geffen had sold De Kooning's 1955 oil painting, ''[[Interchange (de Kooning)|Interchange]]'', for $300 million, and Pollock's 1948 painting, ''[[Number 17A]]'', for $200 million, both to hedge fund billionaire [[Kenneth C. Griffin|Ken Griffin]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 19, 2016 |title=Billionaire drops $500M for 2 masterpieces |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/billionaire-drops-500m-for-2-masterpieces |access-date=September 3, 2021 |website=Fox News}}</ref>