Anthony Bourdain's keepsakes to be auctioned in benefit of legacy scholarship
Celebrity chef and television personality Anthony Bourdain left his mark around the world throughout his career. And now, a year after his death, his legacy of giving back to the world continues as his personal mementos will be auctioned off to benefit student scholarships.
From October 9 to 30, nearly 200 lots of Bourdain's keepsakes will be available for auction online. Some of his most valued possessions, such as artwork, books and accessories, will be available for bidding, including his writing desk and a chrome duck press.
A significant portion of the auction proceeds will go to the Anthony Bourdain Legacy Scholarship at Bourdain's alma mater, the Culinary Institute of America, to help students study abroad or complete a global cuisine and culture international program. Remaining proceeds will benefit his estate.
Bourdain died in June 2018 by suicide at the age of 61 while he was in France to film an episode of his CNN show "Parts Unknown."
All of the items in the auction collection were meaningful pieces to Bourdain, his longtime assistant, Laurie Woolever, told CBS New York.
"Anything that sort of made it to the home collection was something that had a real, personal significance to him, so when I look around this room, I really see so much of him," she said. "I see the things that he loved."
In an Instagram post, the auction host iGavel Auctions said the items "speak to the quiet elegance favored" by Bourdain.
View this post on Instagram“The items being sold present a coherent portrait of Mr. Bourdain. They include art by Ralph Steadman (the Hunter S. Thompson collaborator and a friend of Mr. Bourdain’s) and the artist John Lurie; a steel and meteorite chef’s knife; various books, records and several manuscripts of the chef’s own work. . Many of them speak to the quiet elegance favored by Mr. Bourdain, who told Ms. Woolever that he wanted his Manhattan apartment to feel like the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood. . “He valued comfort, and he knew what looked good,” Ms. Woolever said. “He was definitely aware of how to play to his assets. When Vogue magazine approached us to do a story about him and I presented to him, my thought was, ‘He’s not going to want this.’ As was the case with so many things, I was wrong. He said, ‘Oh I absolutely want to do this, out of a sense of sheer vanity. I’m so flattered.’”” [@Jonesieman of @nytimes - link to full article available in bio] [Photo Credit @cnn @davidscottholloway] . Property from the Collection of Anthony Bourdain will be available in an online auction from October 9-30 on #igavelauctions presented by @larkmasonassociates. Lots will be available for preview from October 2nd. Watch this space. . #anthonybourdain
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A custom Bob Kramer steel and meteorite knife is expected to be the highest-valued item, Woolever said. The auction website predicts the item will sell for anywhere between $4,000 and $6,000.
"Tony was really enamored of this process of doing something that took a long time," she said. "It wasn't mass manufactured. It was done by hand, with a sense of care and a sense of pride in the workmanship."
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Li Cohen is a social media producer and trending content writer for CBS News.
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