Modern Art

Order the Max Beckmann oeuvre catalogues "The Watercolours and Pastels" and "The Paintings", published by the Kaldewei Kulturstiftung, here.

Modern art at Grisebach encompasses a period of artistic creation that could hardly be more multifaceted. It begins with Impressionism and ranges over Expressionism, Dada, Bauhaus, Verismo, New Objectivity, and Surrealism all the way to post-war Modernism and Informalism. Grisebach has set the standard in these fields.

After our auction house was founded in 1986, we quickly established ourselves as the highest-revenue German auction house for modern art. The most expensive artwork ever sold at a German auction to date is Max Beckmann's mysterious “Ägypterin”, sold at Grisebach in Spring 2018 for 5.5m euros.

Sensational results were not limited to the works of prominent artists such as Max Liebermann, Lovis Corinth, Emil Nolde, Max Pechstein, Otto Mueller, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Karl Hofer or Lyonel Feininger (whose “Gelbe Gasse” went for 3.6m euros in the autumn of 2016). Supposed outsiders whose work has gained new appreciation at Grisebach have also reached new heights. For example, the Cologne Progressive Anton Räderscheidt’s 1921 painting “Haus Nr. 9,” an icon of New Objectivity, fetched EUR 865,000 at Grisebach in the fall of 2016.

23.2 million euros for Max Beckmann: world record for Grisebach

On 1 December 2022, Grisebach made art market history: at a sensational 23.2 million euros, Max Beckmann's outstanding "Selbstbildnis gelb-rosa" achieved the highest hammer price in the history of an auction in Germany at Grisebach - the highest price worldwide for a self-portrait by the artist and thus the second-highest price ever for a work of art by Beckmann. A bidder from Switzerland successfully prevailed against bids from five countries. Bernd Schultz: "This work of the century rightly achieved a top price! With this result, Grisebach has set an international benchmark for the German art trade and has once again made Berlin a venue for world-class auction results. This consignment and the outstanding result are a great vote of confidence in the expertise and charisma of our auction house."

In Max Beckmann's coded messages, which run "against the 'apparent' madness of the cosmos", the self-portrait is not just a look at himself, but an open confession of his resistance. During the extraordinarily productive "A. period", as Mathilde Beckmann called her exile in the Netherlands in a letter, she created over twenty direct and hidden self-portraits. Among them was the attempt, begun on 3 August 1943, to find a new perspective beyond all previous self-exploration. It was not until mid-November that his diary records the completion of this endeavour: "6 hours self-portrait with red and yellow-pink - think finished. Enormous effort."

Our next auctions will take place on 28 & 29 November 2024. We appraise your art - confidentially, non-binding, and free of charge. Please send us a reproduction of the artwork by either post or email, including details such as the medium, date, and size (unframed). You may also use the estimate request form. Please do not hesitate to contact us by telephone – we are always at your disposal.