| CHRISTIE'S ITALIAN ART SALE 20TH CENTURY ART OCTOBER 15TH 2007 THIS HUGE CATALOG CONTAINS 190 PAGES AND 69 LOTS $30,019,806 TOTAL SALE 7426 WITH B-8 S-3 HIGHLIGHTS: Italian art continues to dazzle international private collectors and institutions alike and interest in this category has been growing consistently throughout the years. This year’s sale will offer 67 major paintings and sculptures from Italy’s foremost modern and contemporary artists, with examples spanning the key artistic movements of Italian 20th century art. “As in previous years, an outstanding array of prestigious Italian works of art has been gathered in what promises to be a fantastic sale. Included in this sale are two extraordinary private collections from Italy and Europe. This auction brings together pivotal pieces from modern and contemporary Italian artists encompassing Italy’s major artistic movements, and will provide excellent opportunities for veteran collectors as well as new buyers from around the globe to take part in an exciting area of collecting,” said Mariolina Bassetti, Director of Modern and Contemporary Italian art, Christie’s Italy, and specialist in charge of the sale. Representing classic Modern Italian art are works by Giorgio de Chirico (1888-1978) and Giorgio Morandi (1890-1964). One of the highlights from this section is Piazza d’Italia (estimate: £600,000-800,000), a painting that perfectly encapsulates the metaphysical tone so distinctive in de Chirico’s works, which inspired the Surrealists. Leading this section is a private collection of still life paintings spanning the major decades of 20th century art. A rare, lush still life of apples, pears, and grapes, Natura morta su un tavolo, by de Chirico from 1915 will be included in the sale and is estimated to fetch £300,000-500,000. The work was created during his stay in Ferrara, where he was influenced by the great Medieval and Renaissance masters. De Chirico’s painterly approach is evident in his treatment of the subject matter, which is saturated by rich color and shades of white against a bold, dark background. From the same collection is an early work by Alberto Magnelli (1881-1978) Nature morte à la fleur, painted in 1914 (estimate: £100,000-150,000). Radiating with vibrant colour, the geometrical composition is reminiscent of the works by Matisse and the Cubist artists working in Paris at the time, reflecting the importance of Magnelli’s visit to the French capital that year. The collection also includes a work by Fausto Pirandello (1899-1975), Tavolo e sedia con carte e drappo bianco, 1929 (estimate: £45,000-65,000) and a still life by Mario Mafai (1902-1965), Natura morta con manichino, maschera e abito rosso, 1940 (estimate: £60,000-90,000). The master of modern Italian still life painting, Giorgio Morandi, is represented in this section by contemplative works that demonstrate two different periods of his creative output. The earliest, and most important Natura morta (estimate: £400,000-700,000) also comes from the still life private collection and was painted in 1941. The Modern section also includes another Natura morta by Morandi from 1957 (estimate: £320,000-420,000). Several of the lots in The Italian Sale form part of a collection discerningly assembled over the past half a century that showcases many of the developments of Italian art in the Post-War period. Among the star lots leading the section of works by Post-War artists is a stunning piece by Alberto Burri (1915-1995), Nero con punti rossi, 1957 (estimate: £400,000-600,000). Burri experimented with unorthodox materials, stitching together pieces of raw, industrial materials such as burlap and other remants to create textural, abstract surfaces rather than painting directly onto the canvas. Burri was one of the pioneers of Italian Informel art, and together with Manzoni and Fontana, revolutionised the artistic production coming out of Italy in the 1950s and 1960s. The sale contains another piece by Burri, entitled Sacco, 1954 (estimate: £250,000-350,000). The sale also features great examples of works by the notorious enfant terrible of Italian art, Piero Manzoni (1933-1963) and the founder of Spatialism, Lucio Fontana (1899-1968). Manzoni is represented by an elegant and simple Achrome dated 1958 (estimate: £750,000-1,000,000). The Fontana section boasts a rich selection of works by the artist, which span his career. The stunning green and gold Concetto spaziale, 1961 (estimate: £750,000-950,000), with its thickly impastoed surface and swirls of brightly textured green and metallic paint, belongs to Fontana’s Olii, a group of works that brought a more baroque flavour to the Spatialist aesthetic. Other Concetti spaziali, include some stunning examples of his iconic Tagli (cuts), the most important one being large white Concetto spaziale, Attese, 1949-50 (estimate: £400,000-600,000), as well as a perforated, red Concetto spaziale executed in 1961 (estimate: 300,000-400,000). Amongst the sculptural highlights is a piece by Arnaldo Pomodoro (b. 1926), Disk with Shattered Radial III, 1966 (estimate: £150,000-200,000), with fissures in the smooth gilded surfaces teasingly revealing the hidden world of complexities and intricacies so distinctive of his sculptures, and two pieces by Fausto Melotti (1901-1986): Vascello fantasma, 1979 (estimate: £70,000-100,000), and Tema e variazioni, 1969 (estimate: £50,000-70,000). The sale also includes an Agostino Bonalumi (b. 1935) piece from 1969, entitled Scultura angolare (estimate: £80,000- 120,000). Leading the Arte Povera section is an installation by the great, flamboyant Arte Povera artist, Pino Pascali (1935-1968). Pascali’s strangely lyrical Confluenze, 1957 is made up of twenty-two steel containers filled with dyed water, which is expected to achieve between £500,000-700,000. Among the other highlights from this section are several exciting pieces by Mario Merz, Michelangelo Pistoletto, and a group of works by Alighiero Boetti (1940-1994), that include an iconic embroidered Mappa, 1984 (estimate: £250,000-350,000), an Arazzo from 1988 (estimate: £80,000-120,000) and a Biro work entitled Aerei, 1982 (estimate: £100,000-150,000). Pistoletto (b. 1933) is represented by two of his Quadri specchianti, works in which everyday people and objects are represented against a mirror-like background creating a direct interaction between the work and its viewer: Il cordone (1970) and Lampadina (1962-72) are both estimated at £100,000-150,000. In addition, the sale will offer Mario Merz’s (1925-2003), Untitled (Oar), comprising of a series of numerals and a wooden oar, capturing Merz’s idiosyncratic mixture of hidden order and the arcane (estimate: £150,000-200,000). The Italian Sale also includes works by other luminaries of twentieth century Italian art such as Emilio Vedova, Enrico Castellani, Mimmo Paladino, Enzo Cucchi, Piero Dorazio, Mario Schifano, and Gino de Dominicis 207 Giorgio Morandi (1890-1964) Natura morta, 1941 400,000-700,000 £1,196,500 $2,433,681 €1,715,781 Private European 223 Lucio Fontana (1899-1968), Concetto spaziale, 1961 300,000-400,000 £1,140,500 $2,319,777 €1,635,477 Private European 249 Pino Pascali (1935-1968), Confluenze, 1967 500,000-700,000 £860,500 $1,750,257 €1,233,957 Private European 224 Lucio Fontana (1899-1968), Concetto spaziale, 1961 350,000-450,000 £602,900 $1,226,299 €864,559 Private European 202 Giorgio De Chirico (1888-1978), Natura morta su un tavolo, 1915 300,000-500,000 £558,100 $1,135,175 €800,315 Private US 240 Lucio Fontana (1899-1968), Concetto spaziale, 1961 350,000-450,000 £524,500 $1,066,833 €752,133 Private European 242 Enrico Castellani (b1930) Superficie alluminio, 1969 WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR ARTIST 120,000-180,000 £490,900 $998,491 €703,951 European Trade 235 Alberto Burri (1915-1995) Nero con punti rossi, 1957 400,000-600,000 £468,500 $952,929 €671,829 Private US 234 Alberto Burri (1915-1995) Sacco, 1954 250,000-350,000 £446,100 $908,367 €639,707 Private US 239 Lucio Fontana (1899-1968), Concetto spaziale, 1964 250,000-300,000 £434,900 $884,587 €623,647 Private European Comment: Mariolina Bassetti, Head of Sale and Alma Luxembourg, Specialist: “Building on the success of yesterday’s Post-War and Contemporary Art sale, today’s Italian Sale illustrated the continued international interest in 20th century Italian works of art by achieving £14,759,000, the second highest total for the sale category. 87% of the sale’s lots found homes today, and artist auction world records were set for works by Agostino Bonalumi, Fausto Pirandello, Mario Mafai, Fausto Melotti, Enrico Castellani, and Sandro Chia. The lots offered from the Private Italian collection as well as the Private Collection of still lifes performed extremely well, with 100% of lots selling well above their pre-sale estimates. These include the star of the sale, a stunning Natura Morta by Giorgio Morandi as well as the exceedingly rare Natura morta su un tavolo by Giorgio De Chirico, which realized £1,196,500 and £558,100, respectively. |
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