Auction introduction: What does it mean to be an icon? In the vast sweep of art history, the masterpieces that move us are those that hold up a mirror to ourselves. “ICONS: Masterpieces from across time and space” brings together works in which the central figure is one that is instinct to the beholder. Such art presents, to borrow a phrase from Iris Murdoch, the “‘memory’ of what we did not know we knew.” In the presence of icons, the feeling overtakes us to step beyond our ordinary awareness and find inspiration through fresh eyes.