“Out of Tradition: Contemporary Decorative and Applied Art” on view at The Ukrainian Museum

NEW YORK, NY.- Organized by The Ukrainian Museum, the exhibition Out of Tradition: Contemporary Decorative and Applied Art features the work of 35 contemporary decorative artists of Ukrainian background from Ukraine, the United States, and Canada. The aim of the exhibition is to showcase works from the innovative realm of contemporary art and design that are rooted in the tradition and aesthetic of Ukrainian folk art. Ceramics, jewelry, textiles, high-fashion clothing and accessories, and decorative items crafted from wood, glass, and silver [...]

Swatch’s Harry Winston buys $26.7mn diamond at Christie’s auction in Geneva

GENEVA (AFP).- Prestigious jeweller Harry Winston, which was acquired earlier this year by Swatch Group, bought a new colourless, flawless 101.73-carat diamond for a record $26.7 million at an auction in Geneva on Wednesday, auction house Christie’s said. Christie’s representative Raul Kadakia told reporters after the sale that Harry Winston was the buyer of the diamond that Wednesday evening smashed the previous auction-price record for a diamond in its category by more than $10 million. “Twenty-three million (Swiss) francs! Your last chance! [...]

Christie’s in Geneva to offer one of the largest pear-shaped diamonds known to date

GENEVA.- On 15 May 2013 Christie’s will be presenting at auction in Geneva an extraordinary pear-shaped perfect diamond weighing 101.73 carats. Offered for sale for the very first time, this sensational gemstone is not only one of the largest pear-shaped diamonds known to date, it is also one of the world’s most perfect diamonds: a D colour, Type IIA Flawless gem. (estimate on request). Rahul Kadakia, Head of Jewellery, Christie’s Switzerland and Americas: ‘Just as a great artist is able to ‘see’ a [...]

A fancy deep-blue diamond sets a world record at Bonhams Fine Jewellery sale in London

LONDON (AFP).- An extremely rare blue diamond sold for £6.2 million ($9.5 million 7.3 million euros) at a London auction on Wednesday, setting a new world record for price per carat. The fancy deep-blue diamond weighing 5.30 carats sold at Bonhams Fine Jewellery sale in central London for a record $1.8 million per carat, beating the previous record of $1.68 million. The gem, which was bought by international diamond house Graff Diamonds, attracted bids from within the auction room and around the [...]

World record at Bonhams in London for a bottle from the golden age of the Ottoman Empire

LONDON.- Two rare Iznik bottles from the golden age of the Ottoman Empire sold at Bonhams Indian and Islamic sale today, April 23, for a total of £758,500 – with one making £547,250 a new world record for an Iznnik bottle and the second bottle selling for £301,250. The sale made a total of £3.6m. The bottles were previously sold by the well-known antiques dealer Frank Dickinson from his gallery at 104 New Bond Street in January 1919 for what was then the [...]

Lights, camera, costume! Hollywood Costume exhibition opens at The Australian Centre for the Moving Image

MELBOURNE.- The glamour of Hollywood has arrived in Melbourne with the opening of the Australian Centre for the Moving Image’s latest blockbuster exhibition Hollywood Costume. Minister for Tourism and Major Events Louise Asher and Minister for the Arts Heidi Victoria welcomed the exhibition as part of the Victorian Coalition Government’s Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series. “Featuring 100 costumes by more than 50 designers, Hollywood Costume is a once-in-a lifetime opportunity to see the clothes worn by unforgettable and beloved characters from films, from [...]

Cluny Museum’s ‘The Lady and the Unicorn’ tapestries head to Japan for six months

PARIS (AFP).- The tapestry cycle “The Lady and the Unicorn”, considered one of the greatest artworks of Europe’s Middle Ages, is being sent to Japan for six months for a rare foreign showing, the Cluny Museum in Paris said Thursday. The six tapestries, woven around 1500, will be on display at Tokyo’s National Art Centre from April 24 to July 15, and then Osaka’s National Museum of Art from July 26 to October 20. It is only the second time the famed [...]

The Princie Diamond sells for $39,323,750: Most valuable Golconda diamond ever sold at auction

NEW YORK, NY.- An extraordinary 34.65 carat Fancy Intense Pink diamond set a new record high at Christie’s New York on April 16, selling for $39,323,750 (£25,560,438 / €29,886,050) with premium, or $1,135,000 per carat. The diamond – a cushion-cut sparkler that originated from the ancient Golconda mines in South Central India — was purchased by an anonymous collector bidding by phone. The sale price represents a new record for any jewel sold at Christie’s, surpassing the previous house record of $24.3 million [...]

Asian art auctions at Koller Zurich to offer a number of top quality Buddhist figures

ZURICH.- On 7 and 8 May Koller will offer at auction a number of top quality Buddhist figures from long-standing private collections and numerous works of art from Japan, India, South East Asia and the Islamic regions. The top lot is a large Tibetan figure of Buddha Shakyamuni with an estimated value of CHF 400 000 / 600 000. The Asian Art auction at Koller in November 2012 attracted numerous international bidders, with a bronze figure of a Tibetan tutelary goddess reaching CHF [...]

Historically rich Steinway piano tops Bonhams Furniture and Decorative Arts Auction

SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- Bonhams announced its Fine European Furniture, Decorative Arts and Garden Ornaments auction, March 18 at Bonhams in San Francisco, achieved over $1.59 million. Hitting the highest note of the sale was a Louis XV style gilt bronze mounted grand piano from a Hillsborough, Calif., home, which sold for $266,500, far beyond its pre-sale estimate of $60,000-80,000. The piano’s history generated great interest among bidders. It was made by Steinway in New York in 1924 and was shipped to the [...]

Exhibition of treasures of the Royal courts opens at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London

LONDON.- A new V&A exhibition will examine the development of cultural diplomacy and trade between Britain and Russia from its origins in 1555 when the Muscovy Company was founded. Treasures of the Royal Courts: Tudors, Stuarts and the Russian Tsars will reveal the majesty and pageantry of the royal courts of Henry VIII to Charles II and Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible) to the early Romanovs as they sought to strengthen their power against a backdrop of religious and social upheaval. The exhibition [...]

Innovative exhibition encourages visitors to explore their preferences in the Decorative Arts

NEW YORK, NY.- The tension in design between austerity and opulence—the simple and the ornate—is a long-standing one. Plain or Fancy? Restraint and Exuberance in the Decorative Arts, on view February 26 through August 18, 2013 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, invites visitors to consider their own preferences and suggests some of the cultural meanings that have been associated with the two words. The challenge is not to identify quality, or to determine “good taste” versus “bad taste.” Rather the [...]

Christie’s announces details of The Opulent Eye – 500 Years: Decorative Arts Europe

LONDON.- Christie’s announced details of The Opulent Eye – 500 Years: Decorative Arts Europe which will take place on 14 March 2013. Featuring 248 lots, the sale offers sumptuous furniture and works of art from the 19th century including tables, suites of chairs, marble and bronze statuary, clocks, and lighting from international collections; they are distinguished by their exuberant decoration and extravagant materials. The sale is led by a recently rediscovered life-size marble group of The Three Graces after Antoine Canova’s original [...]

Christie’s London announces the sale of Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Guest’s Collection

LONDON.- Christie’s announced the sale of Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Guest’s Collection, which will be offered in the 500 years: Decorative Arts Europe sale on 22 April in Paris. The decoration of the Guest’s estate, overlooking the Parc Monceau, was created by the famous interior designer Emilio Terry in the mid 1960’s. Highlights include two works designed by Emilio Terry: a marble neoclassical fireplace (estimate: €8.000-12.000) and a unique magnificent carpet (estimate: €20.000-30.000), as well as an 18th century royal encoignure by [...]

Chinese paintings, calligraphy and fine snuff bottles abound at Bonhams Asian Decorative Arts Auction

SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- Bonhams announced the Year of the Snake’s first Asian Decorative Arts auction in San Francisco on Tuesday, March 12. The sale will include 460 lots of Chinese ceramics and decorative arts, and more than 100 lots of artworks from Japan, Korea and other Asian countries and regions, from private collections and estates, as well as from institutions and non-profit organizations. There will be property from the collection of Joseph Klein (1899-1987); the Alan E. Feen collection; the Sarkisian collection, [...]