Alberto Giacometti

Private collection, France

Private collection, Paris

Private sale Christie's, Paris, 29 March 2010

Acquired from the above by the present owner

Michel Butor, Diego Giacometti, Paris, 1985, p. 101

Françoise Francisci, Diego Giacometti, catalogue de l'œuvre : volume I, Paris, 1986, p. 48

Léopold Diego Sanchez, Jean-Michel Frank, les éditions du regard, Paris, 1997, p. 45, 104 and 161

Pierre-Emmanuel Martin-Vivier, Jean-Michel Frank : l'étrange luxe du rien, Paris, 2006, p. 185

This lot is sold with a certificate of authenticity from the Comité Giacometti and is recorded in the database of the Fondation Giacometti, the Alberto Giacometti Database, under the number AGD 4749.

The very first decorative art object created by Alberto Giacometti in 1929 was a pair of dog-shaped andirons commissioned by banker Pierre David-Weill. During the 1930s, the sculptor moved away from realism and developed a repertoire of abstract objects for interior designer Jean-Michel Frank. He then created the “Pyramid” and “Ball” andirons, which we present here.

This model was chosen by Jean-Michel Frank for the living room of Nelson Rockefeller’s New York apartment in 1939. Within this major decorator’s ensemble, they stand out, like two striking totems in the black marble fireplace. Their presence stands out alongside the African sculptures displayed nearby, the paintings by Matisse, the furniture by Frank, and the carpet by Christian Berard, in a powerful dialogue between the arts.

Giacometti’s andirons contribute to the mystery of Jean-Michel Frank’s interiors, who saw beyond their apparent simplicity to the magic they bring to the hearth, the heart of the home.