Raf Simons to auction off Picasso ceramics and other works.
Pablo Picasso, Tripode, 1951. © Succession Picasso 2024. Courtesy of Piasa.
Fashion designer Raf Simons will auction part of his personal art collection, which includes 18 rare Pablo Picasso ceramics. The auction, titled “Design + Picasso Ceramics From the Collection of Raf Simons,” will take place today at the Piasa auction house in Paris.
From 1947 to 1971, Picasso designed approximately 633 ceramic editions, according to Christie’s. The artist experimented with creating household objects, including plates and bowls. All of the 18 works Simons is selling in the auction are either pitchers or vases. The price estimates for these Picasso ceramics range from €8,000 to €200,000 ($8,900 to $222,360).
The most expensive Picasso ceramic work in the sale is Tripode (A.R 125) (1951), a vase with three legs and a face painted in blue, which has an estimate of €150,000–€200,000 ($166,800–$222,360). This piece is labeled “exemplaire éditeur” (“publisher’s copy”) in ink. Picasso authorized the serial reproduction of select models at the Madoura workshop, where he created these ceramics, starting in 1949. Suzanne and Georges Ramié, founders of the Vallauris-based studio, retained an inscribed “publisher’s copy” of each piece for their archives, many of which were sold at Christie’s “The Madoura Collection” auction in 2012.
Pablo Picasso, Vase gros oiseau vert, 1960. © Succession Picasso 2024. Courtesy of Piasa.
The auction will feature 131 lots in total, including Pol Chambost’s abstract ceramics and Jens Jacob Bregnø’s sculptures. Simons, who started his career as a furniture designer, will also sell a sizable selection of furniture from several renowned designers, including Pierre Jeanneret, Jean Royère, Mathieu Matégot, Pierre Chapo, and André Sornay.
“I am attracted to strong, singular creative makers and the objects that they have brought into the world,” Simons wrote in the auction catalogue. “This auction represents a meaningful selection of my collection, and each piece has played a role in my life. I have lived with these wonderful works over the years, and I am happy to give them a chance for a new home.”
A library table by Jeanneret is expected to lead the auction’s design sales, with an estimate of €80,000–€120,000 ($88,900–$133,400). Other notable design pieces in the auction include a special order dining table by George Nakashima with an estimate of €30,000–€40,000 ($33,300–$44,400) and an armchair by Ron Arad, expected to fetch €40,000–€60,000 ($44,400–$66,700).
Simons has a history of collecting—and auctioning—rare ceramics, as evidenced in his previous 2022 auction, “French Ceramics 1945–70.” This auction featured his extensive collection of French pottery, including works by Chambost, Georges Jouve, and Roger Capron, which he had collected over 15 years.
