Outstanding works of art are sold at outstanding prices even in a difficult market environment: That is the conclusion of Grisebach's excellent 250th auction in Berlin, which grossed 11.4 million euros* in just over an hour. At the top of the list are the "Portrait of a Young Girl" by Max Beckmann with 1.225 million euros and the "Bright Sunflower Painting" by Emil Nolde with 1.04 million euros, which went to a German and a Swiss private collection.
A large number of international bidders in the room and on the phones honoured the exceptional range of conceptual and abstract art on offer in the "Selected Works" auction with three world records: Walter Dexel's painting "The Electric Meter" from 1922 was lifted from an estimate of 120,000-150,000 euros to a total of 512,000 euros, Friedrich Vordemberge-Gildewart's "Composition No. 42" from 1928 rose from 100,000-150,000 euros to 350,000 euros and Hans Uhlmann's "Head" reached a new price dimension for the artist at 200,000 euros. Overall, Grisebach further extended its market leadership in German art of the 1920s alongside Impressionism and Expressionism with strong hammer prices. Karl Hofer's "Sitzender Akt mit blauem Kissen", formerly in the Littmann Collection and later shown at the "Entartete Kunst" exhibition in Munich, rose from 250,000-350,000 euros to 697,000 euros, doubling the upper estimate. It set the fourth world record in this auction.
Two important paintings by Paula Modersohn-Becker and Max Liebermann also realised very high hammer prices: Modersohn-Becker's "Bäuerin mit zwei Ziegen vor Gehöft" realised 537,000 euros and Liebermann's "Große Seestraße in Wannsee" rose from 350,000 euros to 890,000 euros after a bidding battle lasting several minutes (private collection, Switzerland). Marcel Duchamp's legendary "Red Suitcase" from 1966 also more than doubled its estimate of 200,000 euros to 450,000 euros.
At the top of the "Contemporary" section are two paintings by Günther Förg and Wojciech Fangor, which sold for 187,000 euros each. In the 19th century, an interior by Wilhelm Leibl from the former estate of Max Liebermann caused a sensation, selling for 287,000 euros (estimate 40,000-60,000 euros) to a European private collection. The "Orangerie" auction was once again able to sell "Selected Objects" for over 1 million euros to an international elite of taste, led by a pair of Chinese cabinets that went to Asia for 230,000 euros.
Grisebach continued the positive results of the spring auctions and the Rohde-Hinze collection with the anniversary auction in November. With a total result of 56 million euros, 2015 was the most successful year in the auction house's history.
Bernd Schultz: "2015 will be the most successful year in the history of Villa Grisebach. And the enormous surcharges for the art of the 1920s show that our many years of special attention to this period are bearing fruit and allowing us to look to the future with confidence. We are delighted with the million-euro surcharges for Beckmann and Nolde. These are top results for two artists that Villa Grisebach has especially cultivated since its foundation in 1986."
* All results incl. buyer's premium