Elliott Erwitt had already gained worldwide renown for his memorable photographs of the famous and whimsical when he settled into his grand apartment at 88 Central Park West in the late 1960s.
His home, on the eighth floor of the 12-story Brentmore co-op, at the corner of West 69th Street, cost around $75,000 at the time, according to one of his six children, Jennifer Erwitt. “It was a big stretch to make that purchase,” she said. “He was successful, but I don’t think he was really wealthy.”
By the early 1980s, as his wealth grew, along with his vast collection of copyrighted images, he also created a ground-floor photo studio in the building, converted from a dentist’s office. He kept countless photographs and books (he authored a couple of dozen himself) in the studio and would arrange photo shoots there as well as private sales of his works.
With Mr. Erwitt’s death last November at age 95, both properties are now being sold by his estate. The asking price for the residence is $11.5 million, with $11,428 in monthly maintenance, and the studio is $2.3 million and $8,380 in maintenance, according to the listing broker, Ann Cutbill Lenane of Douglas Elliman Real Estate.
“It’s in estate condition,” Ms. Lenane said, noting that little had been done to either unit in the last several decades. (The residence did receive a few coats of paint over the years, and early on, new windows with seating were installed in the living room.) “But you can make it an extraordinary space,” she added.
