Sotheby’s says it will offer items from the residences of the fashion designer and voracious art collector Karl Lagerfeld, who died two years ago at the age of 85, at an auction in Monaco in the second half of this year.
The choice of Monaco as a venue for the sale is to “highlight the designer’s strong connection to the principality and the sovereign family,” Sotheby’s said in a statement. Lagerfeld owned homes in Monaco as well as in several other locations, both in France and abroad.
Sotheby’s said it had been selected by the executor of Lagerfeld’s estate to auction his possessions. The auction house provided no details of the items to be sold, except to say they would include furniture, design and fine art. The valuation will take two months.
“The auction will pay tribute to this unique and exceptionally creative designer, a major a figure in the worlds of fashion and art,” says Pierre Mothes, Vice-President of Sotheby’s France.
Lagerfeld, who is credited with reviving the fortunes of Chanel, spent lavishly on decorating his houses in a theatrical fashion, and had a particular fondness of the decorative arts of the 18th century and four-poster beds. He purchased furniture, sculptures and paintings at auctions and galleries in Paris and London.
He sold much of his collection at Christie’s in 2000, saying he had tired of the Ancien Régime style. The sale included paintings, furniture, tapestries, sculpture and porcelain.
