Swiss Made UNLOCKED
Online Auction: 23–30 June 2020 • 3:00 PM CEST • Zurich

Swiss Made UNLOCKED 23–30 June 2020 • 3:00 PM CEST • Zurich

S panning 13 collecting categories, Swiss Made UNLOCKED is a brand-new addition to Zurich’s auction calendar, and the first multi-disciplinary online auction for Sotheby’s Switzerland. Going beyond Swiss Art to include Contemporary works, Old Masters, Impressionist & Modern Art and Photographs, the sale also features Design, Jewellery and Watches. Featuring major works from Ferdinand Hodler, Félix Vallotton, Albert Anker, Robert Rauschenberg and Erwin Wurm the sale will be open for bidding from 23-30 June.

Masterworks of Swiss Art

Erwin Wurm on Proportion and Distortion

Among the Contemporary works on offer is Fat Car, from the imagination of Austrian sculptor Erwin Wurm. The piece sees Wurm taking on the themes of consumption, materialism, money and power with the humour and irreverence which have earned him a place in key collections all over the world.

Erwin Wurm, Fat Car. Estimate 60,000–80,000 CHF.

Abstraction

Photography

The sale comprises a fantastic selection of photographs, including a large-scale jungle work by Thomas Struth, as well as photographs by Marina Abramovic, Albert Steiner and Balthasar Burkhard among others.

Thomas Struth, Paradise 7, Daintree. Estimate 45,000–65,000 CHF.

A Dialogue Across Categories

The works in the UNLOCKED sale illustrate the phenomenal artistic diversity present in Switzerland. Reflecting the dialogues present in so many collections today, Old Master Paintings and 19th century works will complement Photographs, Prints and African and Oceanic Art, as well as the fine craftsmanship and artistry of high Jewellery and Watches.

Within the Swiss Made Unlocked Sale, Sotheby’s is delighted to offer twenty-five portrait miniatures by Swiss artists from the celebrated collection of Dr Erika Pohl-Ströher (1919-2016).

Dr Pohl-Ströher was the granddaughter of Franz and Marie Ströher, who founded German hair care and cosmetics giant Wella AG. Although she was born in Wurzen, near Leipzig, and grew up in the foothills of the Saxon Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge), for much of her later life she was based in Switzerland.

Dr Pohl-Ströher was a truly astonishing collector, with interests in subjects as diverse as books, drawings, folk art, minerals, paintings and portrait miniatures. Her collection of portrait miniatures was formed over a period of nearly forty years, between 1978 and 2016. By the end of her life, it comprised more than 1800 individual works, ranging from the 16th to the 19th centuries, and included a plethora of remarkable works from all the major national schools. It is now widely recognised as one of the most important private collections ever assembled.

FIRMIN MASSOT | PORTRAIT OF ARMAND HENRI LOUIS JACOB TRONCHIN (1794-1865), CIRCA 1800. ESTIMATE 800–1,200 CHF.

Auguste Veillon, Swiss OrientalismThis large-scale Orientalist composition, depicting a group of Bedouins resting with a panoramic view of the Sea of Galilea, showcases the mastery of adventurous painter Auguste Veillon. His Swiss roots are evident in the treatment of the water and the reflections of the mountains.

View Lot

Design and Decorative Arts

An acclaimed designer of the 1920s and 1930s, Harald Nielsen became artistic director of Georg Jensen in 1935, succeeding the founder of the celebrated eponymous silversmiths. Showcasing Nielsen’s forward-thinking modern style, this platter, mazarine and cover serve as a reminder that beautiful art doesn’t have to hang on the wall.

AN EARLY DANISH SILVER PLATTER, MAZARINE AND COVER, PYRAMID PATTERN NO. 600 B, DESIGNED BY HARALD NIELSEN, GEORG JENSEN, COPENHAGEN, 1933-1944. ESTIMATE 80,000–120,000 CHF.

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