Art Calendar - 1 January 2022

Sotheby's KARL, Karl Lagerfeld's Estate Part III

Auction in Cologne March 2022

Sotheby's Cologne presents another auction entitled KARL, Karl Lagerfeld's Estate Part III, dedicated to the estate of Hamburg-born Karl Lagerfeld. It includes a selection of objects from his last residence in Louveciennes, covering various eras and styles, with a special focus on German art of the early 20th century. The highlights can be viewed in advance of the auction in the prestigious rooms of the Palais Oppenheim in Cologne.

Cologne is the new headquarters of Sotheby's in Germany. This was confirmed by CEO Charles Stewart in his interview with the FAZ in May 2021. Sotheby's is the only international auction house to hold auctions in Germany.

The collection, consisting of more than 1,000 lots, reflects the Karl Lagerfeld myth, the man and his style preferences. Sotheby's auctions in Monte Carlo, Paris and online auctions made headlines worldwide. In Monaco, total proceeds of 12 million euros - four times the pre-sale estimate - were achieved. 100% were sold by lots and 96% of lots were sold above estimate. More than 1400 participants from a record 58 countries attended, with a third of the bidders and buyers new to Sotheby's. 



Karl Lagerfeld was a renaissance man. In addition to being a designer for Chanel, Fendi, Chloé and his own label, he was a photographer, publisher, artist, director, curator, gallerist and much more. He had the aura of a rock star and was always setting new rules that ensured he never went out of fashion. Karl Lagerfeld was also an avid collector, said to have owned over 300,000 books.

Karl Lagerfeld established many residences, including Villa Jako in Hamburg, Château de Penhoet, Brittany, Villa Elhorria, Biarritz, Villa Vigie, Monte Carlo, Villa, Grand Isle, Vermont, as well as flats in Rome and Berlin and, as his last residence, the villa in Louveciennes, the interior of which is now being auctioned in Cologne. However, Karl Lagerfeld never lived long in the residences he furnished. He was often interviewed about his passion for collecting and confessed that he would lose interest in a collection too quickly.

"I like collecting, but I'm not crazy about owning things".

Karl Lagerfeld

Karl Lagerfeld was interested in a wide variety of styles. In the 1980s, he became enthusiastic about Italian Memphis design and furnished his penthouse in Monte Carlo completely with it - but parted with most of it again at Sotheby's Monaco in 1991. His next fascination was with 18th-century French decorative arts, which he saw as a kind of ideal of elegance and refinement. In the early 1970s, he became interested in Art Deco, a style that for him represented "the roots of modernity, this modernity that I search for tirelessly".

In the last twenty years of his life, he collected contemporary designers such as Marc Newson, Martin Szekely, Konstantin Grcic, Maarten Van Severen, his favourite creators Louis Süe and André Mare, as well as the French fashion designer, poster artist, engraver and illustrator Georges Lepape, and Ludwig Hohlwein, well-known poster artist and graphic designer of the early 20th century.

Photos: Excerpts from Monaco -Karl Lagerfeld - Vente Live - 3-4-5 décembre 2021

His last residence in Louveciennes, which he spent 4 years renovating, has an unexpected interior design: art of the early 20th century with objects from 1920s Germany, in particular furniture by the German architect and furniture designer Bruno Paul. The villa is dominated by posters - Karl Lagerfeld had amassed a collection of early 20th-century German-language advertising graphics depicting a sophisticated German culture.

His collection, auctioned at Sotheby's, also included his personal objects, such as the bowls and cushions of Choupette, the cat who was by his side for the last eight years of his life, home textiles and his three Rolls Royces. His notebooks are fascinating, very early drawings testify to his creative genius.

JOANA VASCONCELOS

Choupette

signed, titled and dated 2013

earthenware by Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro,

polychrome enamel, handmade cotton hook

58 x 20 x 41 cm ; 22 13/16 x 7⅞x 16⅛in.

2013

Lot vendu : 20,320€

Auctioned in Monte Carlo - ©Sotheby's

SAINT LAURENT PARIS

Black Velvet Zebra Jacket

Jacket in velvet, nylon, embroidered with sequins and silver metal and black plastic chains embroidered with silver sequins

 and black perlines, silver metal chains - fringed finishes with chains, two flap pockets, black lining

Size 50 approx.

Shoulder 45 cm ; Sleeves 66 cm ; Length 80 cm

Comes with pair of Chanel lambskin gloves size 8.5

Lot vendu : 35,280€

Auctioned in Monte Carlo - ©Sotheby's

Fashion

Karl Lagerfeld called himself the "Channeler of Coco". However, he rarely wore Chanel himself, as he emphasised: "In Chanel I look like my mother". Nevertheless, a handful of Chanel pieces were represented in the auction, such as the black shoulder bag in a style that was never sold in Chanel boutiques or even worn on the catwalk of a show. This piece is as mysterious as its owner himself, as its exact design never made it past a prototype in Karl Lagerfeld's personal collection.

Mostly he wore black and white and was eccentrically but always elegantly dressed. The auction therefore includes more than 200 pairs of the famous fingerless leather gloves he wore for the last twenty years of his life, as well as suit jackets by Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, KL, Comme des garçons and Martin Margiela.

LOUIS SÜE et ANDRE MARE

ompré dressing table, circa 1925

lacquered wood, oak, brass and glass

71 x 114 x 68 cm ; 28 x 44 ⅞ x 26 ¾ in.

Lot vendu : 88,900€

Auctioned in Monte Carlo - ©Sotheby's

EWAN Mc GREGOR for Habitat

A studio chair embroidered Karl Lagerfeld

ebonised oak and black cotton

Height 35 1/2; width 24 in; prof 18⅓in

Lot vendu : 50,800€

Auctioned in Monte Carlo - ©Sotheby's

A black relacquered wood library step ladder, late 19th century - early 20th century

Height 92½in; width 25 in; prof 55 in

Lot vendu : 22,860€

Auctioned in Monte Carlo - ©Sotheby's

About Sotheby's Cologne:

Cologne is Sotheby's fifth sales location alongside its European branches in London, Paris, Geneva and Milan. The auctions hosted by Germany cover a wide range of works of art - from Modern & Contemporary Art to Design, Photography and Luxury Items. The material will be acquired in Germany and neighbouring countries. The cataloguing will be done by a team of specialists on site. The auctions will be presented online from Cologne.

Find out more at:

www.sothebys.com

1 January 2022  - By. C. Mauer