Specialist Eva Seeman's choice – Modern Art + Design

The catalog for the spring's major hammer auction with modern and postwar design is here: Modern Art + Design. The selection is carefully curated and handpicked by Bukowskis specialists to present a modern selection of international and national designs. We have talked to Bukowskis Specialist Design and 20th Century Works of Art Department, Jonatan Jahn, regarding objects from the spring auction, which will be held May 22nd.

Hi Eva Seeman, specialist design and 20th century works of art department!

Which are your favorite objects from the Modern Art + Design auction?

3. EDWARD HALD, grail, Orrefors 1920. This is a glorious example of an early thin walled grail vase which shows how innovative the lille glassworks Orrefors was in the beginning of the fresh start that was initiated by consul Ekman in 1917. The decor is very up-to-date with its wiggling plant ornament in blue with a lion yellow backdrop. So affordable!

41. WILHELM KÅGE, vase "Surrea", Gustavsberg 1940-tal.
The displaced shape made it very precarious to burn the vases along with getting them burned in a good condition, without getting too serious burning cracks. Surrera was shown for the very first time at the exhibition ”Idyll and Panic in the firing furnace” at Nordiska Kompaniet in 1940. With this particular name on the exhibition, Kåge demonstrated the drama after the burning since they opened up the firing furnace and showed the objects melting together or fall apart. A part of the these ”failures” were exhibited at the premiere exhibition and they are – just like the Surrea – sought-after collector’s item.

144 & 145. WIWEN NILSSON, candlesticks, a pair, Lund 1943 & WIWEN NILSSON, cocktail shaker, Lund, 1960.
The history is well-known about Wiwen Nilsson’s exhibited silver at the Jubilee Exhibition in Gothenburg in 1923 which had to endure tough and unreasonable critique from contemporary critics. The judgement was that he processed silver like plates of steel and didn’t enhance the qualities of the material. You can only guess that Wiwen returned slightly dispirited to the shop in Lund and began to refine his ideas. But he got revenge! The National Museum bought ten objects from Wiwen at the Stockholm Exhibition in 1930 and what was shown there was a more accentuated shape and a refined geometric idiom. It as an idiom Wiwen stuck to for the rest of his working life. Both objects above are designed at the 1930s and show how Wiven used geometry with the spheric, quadratic and facetted shape in different ways.

205. AXEL EINAR HJORTH, table "MORA", Nordiska Kompaniet, ordered by the Stockholm Exhibition 1930.
Today is hard to believe that Axel Einar Hjort’s role as a chief architect at Nordiska Kompaniet fell into oblivion during late 20th-century. His greatness shown versatility as a furniture architect, where the Swedish roots were mixed up with sophisticated elegance from the French art deco. The furniture his atelier drew under a ten year period while he was active at the department store, feels everlasting up to date and desirable among collectors and interiors. The exhibition furnitures are today true rarities. The fact that Bukowskis got the pleasure to sell yet another Mora table, which was ordered by the Stockholm Exhibition, is very exciting! The documented interior by Hjorth’s Mora furniture at the Stockholm Exhibition consisted of a corner cabinet, a pair of covered chairs and the table Mora. The table, as we know, is produced in only two copies. Needless to say, if there are more tables out there. In Spring 2017 the very first Mora table was sold for 320,000 SEK.