Our guest blogger this week is Victoria Shaw-Williamson, a specialist in Furniture and Decorative Arts and Associate Vice President of the Interiors Department of Christie's, the venerable London-based auction house founded in 1766. Victoria is a certified appraiser with over 17 years of experience in the world of art, antiques and auctions.
Victoria Shaw-Williamson
Presenting monthly sales in New York, London, and Paris, Christie's Interiors department offers a wide range of material in all areas of fine and decorative art. Working with estates, private collectors, and museums, the Interiors department is uniquely positioned to present material at a moderate price point. With an average lot value of $2200, the Interiors department offers material that is fresh to the market. The strength of the department lies in its diversity, and the ability to offer a property in a broad swath of categories including paintings, sculpture, furniture, rugs, silver, porcelain, glass and Asian works of art. With prices startings at $500 and 90% of our lots offered with no reserve, Christies's Interiors has something for everyone.
I want to show you some examples of items sold by Christie's Interiors at recent sales.
A French Panoramic Wallpaper, Zuber, 20th century, sold at Christie’s South Kensington sale 5372 lot 486 for £3570
Our South Kensington saleroom recently offered a set of Zuber wallpaper panels in the “Décor Chinois” pattern, Designed by Eugene Ehrmann and Georges Zipelius in 1932. This is an interesting 1930s re-interpretation of the French 18th century version of the Chinese aesthetic. This is also a great example of material that works well with upholstered furniture.
Louis XV Style Bergeres, 20th century, sold at Christie’s Paris sale 5476 lot 41 for €1000
While these chairs are traditional antiques, they are a good example of the French re-interpretation of the Rococo period with an eye towards comfort, using curved recamier style arms that echo the cabriole carved legs. The pairing of a crimson silk damask with a giltwood carved frame is a traditional solution to upholstered furniture.
A Pair of Hostess Chairs, By William (Billy) Haines, Circa 1960 est. $6000/8000, sold for $22,500
Collectors of modern design and followers of Billy Haines’ interiors were particularly taken with this pair of chairs. Haines took a traditional design from a George III cockfighting or writing chair and imbued it with more modern proportions, color scheme and scale. This pair of chairs came out of a home that had been completly designed by the Haines firm in the 1960s. Other than the occasional reupholstering, the collection had remained intact since 1960 and at the time of our auction was one of the last remaining Billy Haines interiors.
A Pair of Zebra Skin upholstered benches, sale 2301, April 2010, sold for $6250
One very popular trend that consistently comes up in our sales is the use of animal hide for upholstery. We usually see animal hides paired with Art Deco or Neoclassical style lines, and the combination is particularly sought after by collectors. This particular example works well because of the ebonized frame which mirrors the dark striations in the zebra hide.
Pair of tub chairs, possibly Leleu, sold at Christie’s New York, Sale 2141 lot 579, for $3250
Great pair of chairs, and exactly what they should have sold for at auction. Naturally a dealer would sell these for much more in a gallery, so this a good example of the bargains that can be found when shopping at auction. I do wonder if this is the right upholstery for the chairs, since the tones of the wood and the upholstery are so close that the fabric doesn’t seem to stand out much.
Set of 6 upholstered dining chairs, sold for $63, April 2009
Quite a bargain! Possibly these chairs failed to inspire bidding because of the challenging upholstery? This is a good example of how a creative Interior Designer can breathe new life into a set of chairs with the right fabric choices for the frame.
This pair of chairs will be offered in our upcoming June 23 and 24th sale with an estimate of $1500/2000
As with most 19th century French furniture, proportions are larger than what you would find in the 18th century. The carving on these chairs is spectacular, with a delicately carved crest rail and upholstered arms which terminate with carved egg-form hand-holds within foliate surrounds. Working with Robert Allen/Beacon Hill, we replaced the traditional aubusson style upholstery that had probably been on these chairs since the 1950s with Beacon Hill's Sea Rose in Lilac. The result is a look that retains the luxurious quality and texture that is appropriate for these chairs, with a more updated color palette that complements the giltwood carving of the frames.
The Interiors department June 23-24 sale is on view beginning Saturday June 19, and includes our core categories of fine art, furniture, rugs, silver, porcelain, glass and Asian works of Art. Our June catalogue cover exemplifies the spirit of "Everything Old is New Again", with the pairing of traditional and modern furniture with a pair of earthenware urns by contemporary artisan Peter Lane. We created this vignette of cool earth tones against the backdrop of the vibrant Beacon Hill fabric Papageno in Lilac. The colors of the fabric against the warm hues and pale colors of the objects are a perfect complement to each other.