Hammer Prices and Museum Purchases

During this summer's Live Auction, a total of 1,300 lots came under the hammer, and the many remarkable hammer prices were achieved across a wide range of the different art objects that we sell at our auctions.

Modernism from France, China and Denmark

Modern art in particular experienced a great deal of success at the auction. The category was led by the Polish-French artist Henri Hayden and his 1920 Cubist work "Bretonne", which was sold for DKK 1.95 million. The Chinese artist Xie "Lalan" Jinglan followed suit with a hammer price of DKK 1.5 million for the painting "Le Combat était il égal?" from 1967, while the classical Danish modernist Vilhelm Lundstrøm achieved a hammer price of DKK 350,000 for one of his beautiful still lifes from 1942. The Danish artist Sonja Ferlov Mancoba is currently enjoying a great deal of attention in the art world after a solo exhibition at the National Gallery of Denmark. This could also be seen at the auction, where one of her sculptures from 1951 changed hands for a hammer price of DKK 320,000.

Decorative Art and Design Classics

Danish decorative art and design have long been sought after by international collectors. At this auction, one of Axel Salto's striking stoneware vases in the budded style was sold for a hammer price of DKK 760,000. The architect Finn Juhl is also sought after, which the hammer price of DKK 240,000 for a pair of his iconic ”FJ 45” chairs could testify to. Another well-known design classic is the Rolex wristwatch "Model Master GMT". At the auction, we presented an example of the watch that was purchased by an American helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War. The watch achieved a fine hammer price of DKK 180,000.

Hammer Prices on the Antiques

In the fine art department, it was a picturesque motif with Venus and Adonis from the 18th/19th century, which led the pack with a hammer price of DKK 920,000, while the Asian art auction included a Chinese censer that went for a hammer price of DKK 220,000. An Art Deco tiara and a fluted porcelain set also achieved terrific hammer prices of DKK 205,000 and DKK 182,000 respectively. Even a French table top from the late 19th century did well. It came from the Danish designers Margit and Erik Brandt's collection and made it to a total of DKK 95,000. The summer's auction concluded with art and antiques from Russia, and among the surprises of this auction was a large glass vase from the Imperial Glass Factory, which was sold for DKK 220,000.

New Artwork for the Museums

At our auctions, the museums are often looking for new works for their collections. This time it was the ARKEN Museum of Modern Art that bought a photographic work of art by the German contemporary artist Thomas Ruff. With a hammer price of DKK 330,000, the work is the most expensive photograph ever sold at an auction in Denmark. Another museum piece was purchased by the Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle, who had set their eyes on a motif from the area around the museum by the landscape painter I.P. Møller. The museum won the painting from 1854 for a hammer price of DKK 22,000. We congratulate the two museums on their new acquisitions and look forward to seeing the works in their collections.

View the list of the most recent museum purchases

Get a Free Valuation!

Do you have works of art, design classics or heirlooms that you would like to have valuated? We are always ready to give you a free and non-binding valuation of your items – either at one of our locations in Copenhagen or Aarhus or via our online valuation service at bruun-rasmussen.dk. We are always looking for items for our three auction types: Live Auction, Online Auction and Direct Auction.