The sale includes 171 lots and is estimated to bring a total of £1.7-2.5m and includes a mixture Post-war European, American and Contemporary design, set to appeal to a range of tastes.
“Recently you’ve seen the old world collector market populated by more academic concerns contrast with what younger collectors are interested in,” Sotheby’s design specialist Adam Trunoske told ATG. “They want live with the design the way they live with their contemporary art, and the line between the two is starting to blur.”
Trunoske added: “These pieces are fashionable. It’s a flow through culture, it’s not just single, static pieces on their own so people buy them and put them together.”
London as design centre
The November 16 sale precedes the opening of London’s Design Museum in its new £83m Kensington High Street premises on November 24. The new centre, according to Sotheby’s, is further evidence of London’s “ever-growing status as an influential hub for the international design scene”.
Though the auction house and museum have not directly collaborated, the museum’s director Deyan Sudjic recently wrote the introductory essay for the auction of David Bowie’s design collection.
Among the top lots at tomorrow’s sale are Han Coper’s c. 1970 monumental stoneware ‘Spade Form’ vase (est. £50,000-70,000); a Fontana Arte 1959 low table (est. £40,000-60,000); and Ron Arad’s 1992 ‘Loop Loop’ chair (est. 50,000-70,000).
