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.
Among the highlights of the sale are masterpieces by blue-chip painters of Swiss Art. An unmissable example is a stunning autumnal landscape by Cuno Amiet, Herbstlandschaft. Realised in 1906, it is representative of the most innovative and creative period in this renowned artist’s career. Additionally, a bold and expressive female portrait by Ferdinand Hodler will be offered alongside a tender portrait of a child by Albert Anker, and a powerful and evocative semi-industrial landscape by Félix Vallotton.
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.
The 20th century is represented, among other works, by Victor Vasarely’s black and white Bug III and Serge Poliakoff’s Composition aux formes blanches, 1959 which illustrate the artists’ exploration of abstraction via experimentation with compositional balance. Alongside these works, the geometrical abstraction of Verena Loewensberg’s Untitled, 1976 and the iconic pastel by Augusto Giacometti naturally find a place in our cross-category Zurich sale.
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.
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.
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.
