An upcoming auction in New York, entitled The Collector: Icons of Design, will see some of the world's most-covetable pieces of design go up for sale. Here's a peek at what's on offer.
1 Table topping
Isamu Noguchi’s Goodyear table is the auction’s top lot. The highly sculptural piece was designed in 1939 for the then-president of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and it’s widely regarded as one of the most important examples of 20th-century American design.
• Goodyear table, pre-sale estimate US$2 million (Dh7.3m) to $3m
2 Timely sale
Dating back to 1900, this table clock by Adolf Loos is one of the oldest pieces on offer at the auction. Made of copper-plated brass, steel and bevelled crystal, the clock will be sold with its double-end case and key.
• Adolf Loos clock, pre-sale estimate $100,000 to $150,000
3 Fantastic five
The auction will feature five works by the famed Italian architect and designer Carlo Mollino. His Tipo B side chair was created in 1950, and it’s entirely in keeping with Mollino’s ethos that “everything is permissible as long as it is fantastic”.
• Tipo B side chair, pre-sale estimate $100,000 to $150,000
4 Side note
The auction, which is being run by Phillips, will also feature pieces by Josef Hoffmann, such as this stained beech side chair, which was crafted in Vienna circa 1908. The chair was produced by Jacob & Josef Kohn of Austria, and the firm’s printed labels can still be found on the underside of this chair, more than 100 years later.
• Josef Hoffman side chair, pre-sale estimate $30,000 to $40,000
5 Flying high
Eileen Gray is another of the big-name designers whose pieces feature in the auction. Among these is the Transat chair, which was designed in 1930 for the Maharaja of Indore in India. Her Aéroplane ceiling light (pictured), which was also designed circa 1930, is extremely rare and will be sold along with original correspondence between Eileen Gray and the art historian, curator and author Gladys Fabre.
• Aéroplane ceiling light, pre-sale estimate $250,000 to $350,000
• The Collector: Icons of Design auction will be held on December 16. For more information, visit www.phillips.com.
