June 11 - PW+C Auction

8/6/2019 June 11 - PW+C Auction

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For Immediate Release24 June 2011

Contact: Matthew Paton [email protected] tel. +44 20 7389 2965

UNPRECEDENTED COLLECTION OF ICONIC MASTERPIECES

CHARTING THE EVOLUTION OF BRITISH ART FROM BACON TODOIG OVER THE PAST SEVENTY YEARS TO BE SOLD AT

CHRISTIES LONDON ON 28 JUNE

SEMINAL WORKS FROM ARTISTS FRANCIS BACON, LUCIAN FREUD, FRANK AUERBACH, PAULAREGO, DAMIEN HIRST, RON MUECK, JENNY SAVILLE, CHRIS OFILI AND PETER DOIG

DEMONSTRATE THE ENDURING STRENGTH AND GLOBAL INFLUENCE OF BRITISH ART

Illustrated above, left to right, from top:Lucian Freud, Rabbit on a Chair(1944); Francis Bacon, Study for a Portrait(1953); Lucian Freud, Woman Smiling(1958-59);

Damien Hirst, Untitled (1996); Ron Mueck, Big Baby(1996); Peter Doig, Red Boat (Imaginary Boys) (2003-04).
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Auction28 June 2011 at 7pmCatalogue:http://bit.ly/ktoggB

London - Christies announces the Post War and Contemporary Art Eveningauction on 28 June 2011, which will offer 67 works and is expected to realise acombined total of 55,870,000 to 77,620,000 (corresponding sale in June 2010 -

40,910,000 to 58,140,000). Highlights include Andy Warhols iconic, large-scaleMao (1973) (illustrated right) exhibited at the first exhibition of Mao paintings atMuse Galliera, Paris in 1974, Warhols vivid emerald green Little Electric Chair(1964), Miquel Barcels Faena de muleta (1990), the largest and most importantexample of the artists celebrated bullfight paintings ever to come to auction andJuan Muozs Esquina positiva(1992), first unveiled to great acclaim at the landmarkDocumenta IV in Kassel in 1992, which launched the artists international career.The auction exhibition will be on public view in London from 25 to 28 June.

Francis Outred, European Head of Post-War and Contemporary Art, said: At a time when the global art world

unites to celebrate the Venice Biennale, Christies is delighted to bring together works from 14 countries for this June's Post War andContemporary Art auction. At the heart of the forthcoming season is one of the finest groups of British Art ever to be assembled atauction, spanning from the early 1940s to the present day. Looking across the generations, one begins to see continuities between theinky-blue washes of paint in Francis Bacons landmark Study for a Portrait (1953) and Peter Doigs liquid application of the mediumin Red Boat (Imaginary Boys) (2003-04), undoubtedly one of his best paintings this century. Indeed the drive to depict real, physicalpresence is equally apparent in Lucian Freuds pivotal painting Woman Smiling (1958-59) as in Ron Muecksmesmerising, hyper-reaBig Baby (1996). Assembled from a variety of collections including that of Kay Saatchi, we are delighted to have brought together such acohesive group of masterworks.

Christies is honoured to offer an exceptional grouping of early works on paper by Lucian Freud from the

collection of Kay Saatchi (1943-44), Freuds pivotal paintingWoman Smiling(1958-59), estimated at 3.5 million to4.5 million, Francis Bacons seminal Study for a Portrait(1953) (estimate on request), as well as Frank AuerbachsHead of E.O.W. (1953), estimated at 350,000 to 450,000. United by their common faith in the possibilities ofpaint, Freud, Bacon and Auerbach came to define what was a unique golden age in Post-War London. It was in1953 at the Royal College of Art, in a studio lent by his friend Rodrigo Moynihan that Bacon was to create some ofthe most hauntingly beautiful works of his career, including his definitive series of Popes and his first portraittriptych Three Studies for the Human Head. Study for a Portraitwas the last painting to be realised at the Royal College of Art; it embodies the characteristics of all of Bacons great works from 1953, projecting them onto a new andimpressive scale. The painting has a distinguished and exclusive heritage of artistic ownership. Rodrigo Moynihanwas the first owner and it later belonged to Louis Le Brocquy, the renowned Irish painter, who was the last to keepit before its acquisition by the present owner in 1984. 1953 was the same year that Frank Auerbach created hisdeeply impassioned Head of E.O.W, a richly stippled almost sculptural portrait of his lover Estella, Stella West. Thesecond painting ever realised of E.O.W., it was bought by the artists life-long friend, the new British wave filmdirector Clive Donner in the 1950s with his first big pay cheque. Having formed part of his prized collection, this isthe first time this intense and intimate painting has been available to the public for over sixty years. Lucian FreudsWoman Smilingis a majestic, larger-than-life size portrait of the artists young lover and prize-winning Slade Schooof Fine Art pupil, Suzy Boyt. Painted in 1958-59, it represents the only existing single portrait of the woman who was to mother four of Freuds children from 1957-1969 and whose friendship with the artist was to last manydecades. Once described by Robert Hughes as the turning point in Freuds work with the human clay it marks apivotal moment in the artists oeuvre when he first began to employ the gestural and painterly mark making nowconsidered his hallmark.
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Key contemporary British highlights include Peter Doigs Red Boat(Imaginary Boys) (2003-04), estimated at 1.4 million to 1.8 million,arguably the finest painting made by the artist this century, and PaulaRego's highly emotive Looking Back (1987), estimated at 600,000 to800,000 (illustrated right), exhibited to great acclaim at her pivotalretrospective at the Serpentine Gallery in 1988. In addition the auctionincludes a number of definitive works from the Young British Artmovement: Big Baby (1996), the first artwork in Ron Muecks catalogue

raisonn, estimated at 600,000 to 800,000, Damien Hirsts Untitled(1996), estimated at 350,000 to 450,000, his very first heart-shapedbutterfly painting, which was previously owned by Charles Saatchi, JennySaville's painterly and deeply personal Interfacing (1992) estimated at400,000 to 600,000, and Chris Ofilis Afro Red Web(2002-03),estimated at 900,000 to 1.2 million and exhibited in the British pavilionat the Venice Biennale, 2003 (illustrated below).

Dina Amin, Director and Head of Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Auction, said: In a fitting tribute to the present Venice

Biennale 2011, five of the works to be featured in our forthcoming auction have previously graced their respective national pavilions. These includeGermaineRichiers LOgre (1949) in 1952, estimated at 100,000 to 150,000,Lucian Freuds Rabbit on a Chair (1944) in 1954, estimated at 300,000to 400,000, which was part of a group show alongside fellow British artistsFrancis Bacon and Ben Nicholson, Lucio Fontanas Concetto Spaziale, Attes(1966) estimated at 2million - 3million, which was exhibited as part of theartists grand installation at the Venice Biennale in 1966. Fontana received thcoveted International Grand Prize for painting for his contribution - received onlytwo years before the artists death this accolade paid tribute to Fontanas tirelessand continuing ambition to shape the contemporary artistic landscape. Finally

Illya Kabakovs The New Accordeon, (2001) estimated at 400,000 to600,000, was presented in Venice in 2001 as part of an installation entitledNot Everyone Will be Taken in the Future, andChris Ofilis Afro Red Web(2002-03), was realised as the monumental centerpiece for the artists acclaimedexhibition Within Reach at the British Pavilion for the Venice Biennale in 2003

FollowingAndy Warhols great success in the Post-War andContemporary Art Auction in New York in May, where 25works by the art worlds King of Pop, realised a combined

total of $96,729,850, Christies London is also delighted tooffer two exceptional masterworks by the artist, including hisnotorious Little Electric Chair(1964), estimated at 1.8 millionto 2.2 million (illustrated right), marking the pinnacle ofWarhols famed Death and Disasterseries and his brilliant,large-scaleMao (1973), estimated at 6 million to 8 million.Realised in a vibrant, painterly palette of violet and magenta,it was exhibited at the artists landmark exhibition ofMaopaintingsat Muse Galliera in 1974 and ranks amongst themost powerful and enduring of all the artists images.


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A number of exceptional works by the celebrated Spanish artists MiqueBarcel and Juan Muoz will also feature at auction. Representing a keyhighlight of the season, Barcels dramatic Faena de muleta (1990), estimated a1.5 million to 2 million, (illustrated left) is by far the largest and mostimportant example of the artists celebrated bullfight paintings ever to come toauction. The work swirls with a dizzying, centrifugal energy across its expansivesurface. It escalates from the dusty floor of the arena to the upper echelons ofthe seated crowd, ascending in height with an abundance of richly impastoedpaint and mixed media on canvas. Juan Muozs seminal work,

Esquina positiva(1992) estimated at 3 million to 5 million (illustratedright), is a timeless masterpiece created at the height of the artiststragically short career. An early and exceptional example of the artistscelebrated Conversation Pieces, it was unveiled to great acclaim at thelandmark Documenta IV in Kassel in 1992. This pivotal exhibitionlaunched the artist to international prominence, showcasing hismagical, sculptural vernacular to a broad global audience.

These works are joined by a suite of four outstanding paintings byGerhard Richter spanning his career to date and

capturing his artistic trajectory from photo-realism to abstraction. A number of major photographs are also featuredin the auction, including two iconic works byAndreas Gursky, Cindy Shermans unique, large-scale Untitled(1983), estimated at 1 million to 1.5 million, originally commissioned by collector Charles Saatchi and anoutstanding example ofThomas Struths celebratedMuseum Photographs,entitledArt Institute of Chicago I, estimatedat 250,000 to 350,000.

Viewings:

Jun 25 11am - 5pm

Jun 26 12pm5pm

Jun 27 8am - 5:30pm

Jun 28 8am - 3:30pm

About Christies

Christies, the world's leading art business had global auction and private sales in 2010 that totaled 3.3 billion/$5.0 bill ionChristies is a name and place that speaks of extraordinary art, unparalleled service and expertise, as well as internationaglamour. Founded in 1766 by James Christie, Christie's conducted the greatest auctions of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuriesand today remains a popular showcase for the unique and the beautiful. Christies offers over 450 sales annually in o ver 80categories, including all areas of fine and decorative arts, jewellery, photographs, collectibles, wine, and more. Prices rangefrom $200 to over $100 million. Christies has 53 offices in 32 countries and 10 salerooms around the world including inLondon, New York, Paris, Geneva, Milan, Amsterdam, Dubai and Hong Kong. More recently, Christies has led the market

with expanded initiatives in emerging and new markets such as Russia, China, India and the United Arab Emirates, with

successful sales and exhibitions in Beijing, Mumbai and Dubai.

*Estimates do not include buyers premium. Sales totals are hammer price plus buyers premium and do not reflect costs,financing fees or application of buyers or sellers credits.

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Visit Christies Website atwww.christies.com

Images available on requestComplete catalogue available online atwww.christies.comor via the Christies iPhone app
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