Mets Founding Family Selling $35M Renoir After 97 Years

The blue-blood New York family that helped launch the Amazin's in 1962 is auctioning off nearly a dozen treasures from their famed art collection.

Apr. 18, 2026 at 5:52pm

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The Mets founding family is auctioning off a $35 million Renoir painting that they have owned for 97 years, along with several other masterpieces from their renowned art collection. The 1877 oil painting 'La femme aux lilas' or 'Portrait de Nini Lopez' is set to hit the auction block on May 18 at Christie's. The collection also includes works by artists like Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, and Vincent van Gogh that the family acquired over the decades.

Why it matters

The Mets founding family, led by Joan Whitney Payson, was known as much for their art acumen as their love of baseball. Payson became the first woman to own a major American sports franchise when she acquired 87% of the Mets in their inaugural 1962 season, helping to heal a city that had lost the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants. The upcoming auction of their prized art collection provides a rare glimpse into the family's cultural legacy and passion for the arts.

The details

The Renoir painting is one of nine masterpieces from the collection of the late Lorinda Payson de Roulet, the daughter of Mets founder Joan Whitney Payson. De Roulet died in October 2025 at age 95. The family purchased the Renoir in 1929 for $100,000, the equivalent of $1.9 million today. Other works up for auction include a Picasso that the family once used as a backdrop for a Nerf dart game, and a Chagall that the family's granddaughter remembered bringing 'joy to everybody' in their home.

  • The Renoir painting is set to hit the auction block on May 18, 2026.
  • The Mets were founded in 1962 when Joan Whitney Payson acquired 87% of the team.
  • The family purchased the Renoir painting in 1929.

The players

Joan Whitney Payson

The pioneering Mets founder who became the first woman to own a major American sports franchise when she acquired 87% of the team in 1962.

Lorinda Payson de Roulet

The daughter of Joan Whitney Payson and the owner of the art collection that is being auctioned, including the $35 million Renoir painting.

Whitney Bullock

The granddaughter of Joan Whitney Payson, who recalled visiting her grandmother's home and greeting the Renoir painting, as well as working in Mets PR and enduring fan fury after the Midnight Massacre trade.

Christie's

The auction house that will be selling the Mets founding family's art collection, including the $35 million Renoir painting.

Max Carter

The global chairman of 20th- and 21st-century art at Christie's, who called the Mets founding family 'one of the greatest, if not the greatest, American collecting family over the 20th century.'

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What they’re saying

“This is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, American collecting family over the 20th century.”

— Max Carter, Global Chairman of 20th- and 21st-Century Art, Christie's

“We'd say 'Hi Renoir,' just to check if it was ok.”

— Whitney Bullock, Granddaughter of Joan Whitney Payson

“I had no idea growing up that I was supposed to be impressed. I really loved the Chagall. It brought joy to everybody.”

— Whitney Bullock, Granddaughter of Joan Whitney Payson

What’s next

The Renoir and the other eight paintings up for auction will be on free public view at Christie's Rockefeller Center galleries from May 9 to May 18, 2026 before the auction on May 18.

The takeaway

The upcoming auction of the Mets founding family's art collection, including a rare $35 million Renoir painting they've owned for nearly a century, provides a unique window into the cultural legacy and passion for the arts of one of America's most storied sports franchise families.