Christie for sale of the Ole Faarup series led by two Peter Doig masterpieces
In October, Christie’s will host a solo sale in the collection of Danish businessman Ole Faarup, his fifty years of Scandinavian heavyweights who pursue a mix of contemporary art, such as Karin Mamma Andersson and Asger Jorn and Asger Jorn, as well as international stars including Jean-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel-Michel Basquiat and Tracey Emin.
The deal, which is estimated to be £22m high, will be a major test for the upstream of the art market, part of its underperformance in recent years.
Two of the most popular canvases by Scottish painter Peter Doig is sales. The highest is Wanyan (1998–99), a ten-foot panoramic view of Toronto’s rainbow tunnel, expected to sell between £7 million and £10 million. According to the auction house, the image first appeared on the cover of Doig’s 2008 Tate Retrospective’s catalog, and has since become one of the iconic reviews of his position filtered through “memory and myth.” Next to it is Ski jacket (1994), according to grainy newspaper photos of Japanese ski resorts, it is estimated to be between £6 million and £8 million, in which compact small skiers gradually dissolve into abstraction. Both paintings date back to Doig’s 1994 Turner Award nomination, labeling him as one of the most promising painters in Britain.
The third main thing is flowering (1997), Chris Ofili, estimated to be between £1 million and £1.5 million. In his infamous Virgin Mary and no woman No Crythis work level is African portraits, Catholic images and glittering surfaces, including the artist’s trademark use of elephant feces. It stands out in the London and New York reviews and is the cornerstone of Ofili’s mid-term output.
Faarup has a wide range of flavors, but interest in the early work of artists who continue to define this generation is consistent. Among the smaller but still noteworthy trophy is his Documenta debut year, Basquiat’s 1982 painting (£300,000 to £500,000).
The auction will take place on 20th/21st century night and one-day sales in London from 15 to 16 October, with online components running early this month. Highlights will be on display in Copenhagen, Hong Kong and New York before arriving in London.
Faarup started collecting while working for New York Danish designer Georg Jensen in the 1960s, where he visited Moma’s fascination with emerging art. Back in Denmark, he established his furniture and design business, 3falke and formed a collection that mixes Danish modernists such as Jorn and Per Kirkeby with new voices like Andersson, Neo Rauch and members of young British artists. His home turned into an informal gallery, with the work spinning and outing as interest shifted.
The newly formed Ole Faarup Art Foundation will receive all the proceeds from the hammer, which is accused of exporting Danish art, especially those under 50, art from mainland China, Faros and Greenland, to institutions abroad. It will also donate international works to the Danish museum and promote exchanges in both directions.
Christie’s bet is that the combination of blue chip names, fresh-to-market materials and philanthropy will attract bidders in a cool but still on top reward scarce market. The deal may be just as important for Danish artists looking to take a break abroad.
