Deck the halls with works of art from Phillips
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In addition to boughs of holly, ‘tis the season to deck your halls in style with some choice 20th century and contemporary art and design pieces from the upcoming Phillips Hong Kong Autumn Auctions.
Stylistic collectables
Collectors have long flocked to Phillips to get their hands on some of the most prized works of art that have been carefully curated by their specialists. From paintings and sculptures to objets d’art and furniture, they come with not only great aesthetic value, but also the promising potential for monetary value appreciation in the future.
Place your bids for your coveted pieces at the auction house’s two sales of 20th Century & Contemporary Art & Design - an Evening Sale on November 25 and an inaugural Day Sale on November 26. With close to 150 lots to choose from, there’s bound to be quite a few that will add oodles of style to your home.
Museum-worthy art from the 20th and 21st centuries
Worth serious consideration are works from some of the most renowned artists in the world whose works have graced major museums. “Following the success of our last 20th Century & Contemporary Art & Design Evening Sale in May, our international team of experts have once again amassed an outstanding selection of modern and contemporary works of art with desirable provenance from around the world, responding to current collecting trends and tastes,” says Sandy Ma, Head of Evening Sale, 20th Century & Contemporary Art.
Among the hottest lots is British artist Cecily Brown’s Untitled #74 estimated at HK$1,200,000 - 2,200,000. An exquisite example of her smaller-scale, jewel-like paintings that explore the breadth of human experience in tactile oil paintings, this stunning abstract (Lot 2) was painted in 2008. It represents the purest, free-handed abstraction of her career that gives command to the vivacity of pure colour and the confident assiduity of her delicate brushwork.
Alternatively, French Fauvist painter Raoul Dufy’s Régates à Deauville, an oil on canvas painted in 1934 (Lot 17), will enliven your wall with its enthralling maritime panorama. Depicting a bright summer’s regatta day at the seaside resort of Deauville, this breezy painting is estimated at HK$3,000,000 - 3,500,000. It epitomises Dufy’s unparalleled ability to capture the pleasure of leisure activities popular amongst the early 20th century with his revolutionary calligraphic brush strokes and characteristic washes of ebullient colour.
For a focal point and great piece to engage visitors, look no further than celebrated British artist Anish Kapoor’s Untitled (Tangerine). Executed in 2014, Lot 22 is a concave reflective mirror sculpture with a crimson backside which offers a multi-sensory experience that entices viewers like a gilded portal to another dimension. Viewed from a distance, the lacquered bronze and exquisitely fine-tuned surface of this work, estimated at HK$4,500,000 - 5,500,000, projects a luscious golden reflection of its immediate environment that is flipped upside down, distorted, and liquefied.
Iconic pieces from the East and West
Eminently collectable are over 120 lots from the inaugural 20th Century & Contemporary Art & Design Day Sale that includes editions and photographs, plus the largest selection of Danish and Italian design pieces ever offered in Asia.
“This sale will present an array of western art, featuring such sought-after artists as George Condo, Jonas Wood and David Hockney. Their Asian counterparts include Yayoi Kusama, Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara, to name a few. We are particularly excited to offer three works by Tomoo Gokita, representing different phases in his career. We will also feature works by representative Chinese artists including Zao Wou-Ki, Liu Ye and Mao Yan while Southeast Asian artists such as Filipino artist Jigger Cruz, Vietnamese artist Le Pho, Indonesian artist Christine Ay Tjoe will also be represented,” elaborates Charlotte Raybaud, Head of Day Sale, 20th Century & Contemporary Art.
Add a strong sense of style and clean Nordic aesthetics to your home with furniture and lighting from renowned Nordic designers. Place your bid for the master of “Danish Modern” Hans J. Wegner’s iconic Early ‘Architect’s desk’, model no. JH571, designed in 1953 and produced in 1955 (Lot 94), estimated at HK$200,000-300,000.
Team it with his Early Swivel Armchair, model no. JH502, designed in 1955 and produced in the 1960s (Lot 95), estimated at HK$150,000 - 250,000. Both pieces are prime examples of the clean lines, organic textures, and minimal shapes that made waves on the mid-century design scene.
Complete your Scandinavian style with Lot 96, an Early table lamp made in brass, model no. 506. Estimated at HK$50,000 - 80,000, it was designed in the 1940s by Paavo Tynell, an industrial designer fondly dubbed as “the man who illuminated Finland”.
Up close and personal