In 2005, when Takashi Hashiyama, CEO of Japanese television tools maker Maspro Denkoh, resolved to auction off the selection of Impressionist paintings owned by his corporation, together with performs by Paul Cézanne, Pablo Picasso, and Vincent van Gogh, he contacted two primary auction houses, Christie's International and Sotheby's Holdings, searching for their proposals on how they would convey the assortment to the marketplace as effectively.