Diego Giacometti - Design London Thursday, May 2, 2024 | Phillips

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    The present 'Grecque' low table in the summer house of the original owner, circa 1971. Photo: Private family archive
    • Provenance

      Private collection, Paris, acquired directly from the artist, 1968
      Thence by descent to the present owner

    • Literature

      Michel Butor, Diego Giacometti, Paris, 1985, p. 141
      Françoise Francisci, Diego Giacometti: Catalogue de L'Œuvre, Volume I, Paris, 1986, pp. 78-81
      Daniel Marchesseau, Diego Giacometti, Paris, 1986, p. 64
      Daniel Marchesseau, Diego Giacometti: Sculpteur de Meubles, Paris, 2018, p. 149

    • Artist Biography

      Diego Giacometti

      Swiss • 1902 - 1985

      In 1935 Diego Giacometti took a holiday in Stampa, the Swiss town in which he grew up. The trip marked one of the first periods in which he was separated from his brother Alberto Giacometti, and perhaps in connection with having removed himself from the shadow of his brother's career, he began his first animal sculptures. It was shortly after this trip that the younger Giacometti also started making furniture, after patrons admired the stands he was crafting for his brother's sculptures. Diego modeled his maquettes in plaster (as opposed to clay or wax, which was the more common choice for sculptors) and cast his furniture in bronze, a departure from most metal furniture at the time, which was cast in iron. Illustrious clients included the Maeght and Noailles families as well as the decorator Jean-Michel Frank, who commissioned Alberto (assisted by Diego) to create plaster lighting and fireplace accessories.

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PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT PARISIAN COLLECTION

50

'Grecque' low table

designed circa 1965, produced 1968
Patinated bronze, glass.
45.2 x 119.5 x 93.1 cm (17 3/4 x 47 x 36 5/8 in.)
Crossbars impressed DIEGO four times.

Full Cataloguing

Estimate
£200,000 - 300,000 

Sold for £533,400

Contact Specialist

Antonia King
Head of Sale, Design
+44 20 7901 7944
Antonia.King@phillips.com
 

Design

London Auction 2 May 2024