Last week, Bukowskis held the final live auction of the season, the Important Spring Sale. Multi-million sales were achieved, with furniture, art, and Asian crafts selling well above the asking price. Here are some of the items that stood out the most.
The finest in furniture, crafts, and jewellery were showcased on the first day of the auction. Among wardrobes, candelabras, and armchairs, the most notable item was a pair of corner cabinets crafted by Gottlieb Iwersson. These Gustavian cabinets, adorned with exquisite woods like amaranth and kingwood and featuring Carrara marble tops, were estimated to be worth SEK 400,000-600,000 but sold for an impressive SEK 1,812,500. Another highlight was Carl Edberg's stunning chandelier from around 1755, which fetched SEK 1.5 million.
On Wednesday, it was time for the art auction. Eleven million was achieved, and the first big success of the sale was Carl Larsson's Målargården, which, with an asking price of SEK 1,500,000-2,000,000, sold for almost SEK 3.6 million. Larsson's oil painting Martina med matkorgen (study for Frukost i det gröna) was a surprise when it sold for SEK 2.5 million, four times the asking price. Other works that sold for millions of kronor included Anders Zorn's Från Sandhamn (SEK 5,750,000), Delsbostintan (SEK 1,500,000), and Fröken Amelie Coyet (SEK 1,125,000); Stefan Johansson's Julikväll (SEK 1,483,600); Carl Fredrik Hill's Kustlandskap, Luc-sur-Mer (mot Falaise de Lion-sur-Mer) (SEK 1,150,000) and Havsstrand Luc-sur-Mer (SEK 1,750,000); and Carl Mille's Dansande menad (SEK 1,163,600).
See also: Anders Zorn: Sweden's Most Popular Painter
International art saw strong demand, especially for works by Johan Laurentz Jensen, Jacob Philipp Hackert, and Konstantin Fedorovich Yuon. The latter's painting sold for nearly SEK 3.5 million.
See also: A New Record for Indian Artist S.H. Raza
The standout of the auction wasn't a court painter or a Swedish watercolourist but an Indian modernist. With a significant number of international bidders participating online and over the phone, Francis Newton Souza's painting fetched SEK 13,250,000 (SEK 16,485,300 including commission, about £1.2 million). This sets a record as the most expensive work sold at auction in Sweden in 2024 and the second most expensive work by Souza ever auctioned in Europe.
Souza co-founded the Progressive Artists Group (PAG) in 1947. The avant-garde artists aimed to merge India's classical culture with innovative Western techniques and styles in their art. Souza was frequently provocative and controversial in his choice of themes, exploring subjects like eroticism, religion, and the contrast between good and evil. He experimented with various artistic styles, but it is his figurative paintings characterised by sharp black lines from the 1950s and 60s that remain highly sought after.
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The auction week concluded with the Asian catalogue. A Chinese or Central Asian gold vase from the 12th-13th centuries, featuring a round body, high neck, and floral decoration, became the auction's fourteenth million listing when it sold for SEK 1,625,000.
During the spring live auctions, Bukowskis has sold art, design, watches, antiques, crafts, and jewellery totaling SEK 254.4 million, achieving 35 million listings including buyer commissions.
