Phillips Announces Maximiliana: Max Ernst from the Collection of Peter Schamoni
Celebrating the Friendship Between German Surrealist Max Ernst and Filmmaker and Collector Peter Schamoni
To be Sold Across Phillips’ Global Auctions this Season, Starting with the London Sales of 20th Century & Contemporary Art on 14 and 15 October
Max Ernst Pyramid Lake, 1946 Estimate: £550,000-750,000
LONDON – 16 SEPTEMBER 2021 – Phillips is pleased to announce ‘Maximiliana: Max Ernst from the Collection of Peter Schamoni’. Through his close friendship with Max Ernst, renowned film director and screenwriter Peter Schamoni assembled an exceptional collection that serves as a lasting memento of one of the most significant artists of the 20th century. Over 80 works of art will be offered, starting with the 20th Century & Contemporary Art Day and Evening sales in London on 14 and 15 October, followed by New York in November. The sale of the collection will culminate in December with a dedicated online-only sale of works on paper, editions, photographs and ephemera.
Cheyenne Westphal, Global Chairwoman, Phillips, said, “The relationship between Peter Schamoni and Max Ernst, an artist who welcomed him into his home, studio and life for close to two decades, is at the heart of this esteemed collection. Having been on loan to the Max Ernst Museum in Brühl, the pedigree and art-historical significance of the works here is exceptional, but it is the deeply personal dimension of the collection which truly sets it apart. We are incredibly honoured and excited to present this to a global audience across our sales this season.”
Tobias Sirtl, 20th Century & Contemporary Art Specialist, Germany, said, “It is such a rare and magnificent opportunity to offer a collection which truly spans the entire oeuvre of an artist, from the early years to the late period. It represents a great depth of collecting, with works of the highest quality and carrying exceptional provenance.”
Highlights from the 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale, London Spanning the early 1920s to the 1970s, the collection highlights Ernst’s relentlessly experimental approach to material and technique, bringing together paintings, drawings, sculpture, collage, prints, and his innovative frottages.
A leading highlight of the sale, Pyramid Lake is a record of both Ernst’s time in Sedona, Arizona, and of the filmmaker’s later retracing of his footsteps. After the war, Ernst settled in Sedona with Surrealist artist Dorothea Tanning in 1946, the same year that Pyramid Lake was completed. The home they built together was visited by avant-garde luminaries Lee Miller, Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray, among others. Schamoni’s 1991 feature-length documentary Max Ernst: Mein Vagabundieren – Meine Unruhe records this period, incorporating photographic images of the bare timber bones of their house erected against the surreal emptiness of the landscape. Hovering between dream and reality, the highly textured surface of Pyramid Lake is the result of Ernst’s experimentation with materials and process, a breath-taking example of his celebrated frottage works and decalcomania techniques.
Highlights from the 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale, New York
The title for this collection is taken from a 1966 film collaboration between Peter Schamoni and Max Ernst, Maximiliana oder die widerrechtliche Ausübung der Astronomie (Maximiliana and the illegal practice of astronomy). The subject of their film was German amateur astronomer and engraver Ernst Wilhelm Leberecht Tempel (1821-1889), whose discoveries were not properly recorded because his practice as an amateur was deemed to be ‘illegal’. Suffering persecution and humiliation, Tempel nevertheless discovered an asteroid which he named ‘Maximiliana’, a symbol around which Ernst and Schamoni would orient their deep friendship and many collaborations together.
London Auctions 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale Auction: 15 October 2021 Auction viewing: 6-15 October Location: 30 Berkeley Square, London Click here for more information: https://www.phillips.com/auctions/auction/UK010921
20th Century & Contemporary Art Day Sale Auction: 14 October 2021 Auction viewing: 6-14 October Location: 30 Berkeley Square, London Click here for more information: https://www.phillips.com/auctions/auction/UK010721
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ABOUT PHILLIPS Phillips is a leading global platform for buying and selling 20th and 21st century art and design. With dedicated expertise in the areas of 20th Century and Contemporary Art, Design, Photographs, Editions, Watches, and Jewelry, Phillips offers professional services and advice on all aspects of collecting. Auctions and exhibitions are held at salerooms in New York, London, Geneva, and Hong Kong, while clients are further served through representative offices based throughout Europe, the United States and Asia. Phillips also offers an online auction platform accessible anywhere in the world. In addition to providing selling and buying opportunities through auction, Phillips brokers private sales and offers assistance with appraisals, valuations, and other financial services.
*Estimates do not include buyer’s premium; prices achieved include the hammer price plus buyer’s premium.
PRESS CONTACTS: LONDON - Katie Carder, Head of Press, Europe kcarder@phillips.com +44 20 7901 7938
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