Hammer Prices and Museum Purchases

This December's Live Auction in Copenhagen resulted in nine million Kroner hammer prices on masterpieces of art and design by Finn Juhl. At the same time, a number of museums bought several works for their collections.

We began the auction with a focus on strong female voices within fine art, and this theme was well received by the bidders. Among the most expensive lots was a portrait of the young Marie Triepcke (later Krøyer), which the artist Bertha Wegmann created. The painting was sold for DKK 3.1 million, while Anna Ancher's charming portrayal of her daughter Helga with her back turned went for a hammer price of DKK 1.1 million.
Among the paintings from the 20th century, there were also several million hammer prices. Leading the category was a work by the Frenchman Pierre Soulages, which was sold for DKK 5 million. He was joined by the Hungarian-born French artist Simon Hantaï, whose works achieved great hammer prices of DKK 2.7 million and 1.15 million respectively. Two paintings by the CoBrA artists Asger Jorn and Ejler Bille also joined the million kroner club with hammer prices of DKK 1.35 million and DKK 1.1 million. One of the lots that received plenty of media attention at this auction was a sofa and two chairs designed by Finn Juhl. The furniture set was presented at the Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibition in 1939 and has since then been considered lost by design experts. Fortunately, the set turned up here at Bruun Rasmussen, and we are proud to have been able to sell these unique pieces of furniture for a combined price of DKK 3.1 million.

Simon Hantaï: "Étude" (1971). Sold for DKK 2.7 million.
Bertha Wegmann: Portrait of Marie Triepcke, later Krøyer (1885). Sold for DKK 3.1 million.
Finn Juhl: "The Elephant Furniture", 1939. Sold for a combined hammer price of DKK 3.1 million.

Have You Seen Our Museum List?

After the auctions, we always update our list of artwork, furniture and design pieces that have been purchased by museums. This time, the auction resulted in no less than 16 museum purchases. Among these museums was Ordrupgaard, who purchased three works by L.A. Ring for their collection. For Faaborg Museum, it was the work "A Stranger" by the Funen painter Fritz Syberg, while Museum Salling invested in two works by Christen Dalsgaard, which will be exhibited at Skive Museum. In the modern category of the auction, Designmuseum Danmark acquired a "UN Chair" by Jacob Kjær and an armchair by Ole Wanscher. Museum Sønderjylland also took home a chair in the shape of Hans J. Wegner's "The Pincer". We cannot publish the remaining seven museum purchases just yet, but keep an eye on our list of museum purchases.

With these words, we would like to wish everyone a happy holiday and a wonderful new year. Over Christmas, you can find art, design, antiques and collectibles at our Online Auctions and Direct Auctions, and already in March, we will open the doors for next year's first Live Auction in Copenhagen.

For further information, please contact:

+45 8818 1111 · info@bruun-rasmussen.dk