Hammershøi Auction in March 2016

PRESS RELEASE 2 DECEMBER 2015
Hammershøi Auction in March 2016
Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers in Copenhagen presents a number of exquisite works by the world famous
Danish Symbolist painter Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864-1916) at the spring's international auction on 1
March 2016.
"Hammershøi is probably one of the Danish artists, who has achieved the greatest international
recognition for his evocative Nordic motifs in grey tones. However, he was not a very prolific artist, so his
works are rarely seen on the auction market. It is therefore a great pleasure for us to present several works
by Hammershøi at the upcoming international auction, where we can present both one of his well-known
interiors with a woman seen from the back and a peculiar portrait of his wife Ida, who was a model in
many of the artist's works," says Martin Hans Borg, Head of Bruun Rasmussen's department of fine art.
When the subject of Hammershøi comes up,
most people probably associate him with
the highly recognizable idiom, where he
focuses on sparsely furnished interiors with
a delicate use of light. But his subject
matter is much more than just interiors. You
need look no further than to the offered
paintings at this auction, which reveal a
versatility that spans interiors, portraits and
landscapes in grey, brown, black, green,
yellow and reddish tones on the colour
scale.
International Breakthrough
Hammershøi achieved international success
early on, and some of the major artists and
cultural figures of his time, such as Auguste
Renoir, Rainer Maria Rilke, Serge Diaghilev
and Thédore Duret, were captivated by his
style. In Denmark, he became a unique
figure in the contemporary art world and
was supported by a number of private art
collectors, notably the dentist Alfred
Bramsen, the founder of Ordrupgaard
Museum Vilhelm Hansen and the
Hirschsprung Collection's founder Heinrich
Hansen.
However, following his death in 1916,
Hammershøi's works were slowly forgotten
in both Denmark and abroad, presumably because the post-war era’s far more experimental avant-garde
movements made his work seem too cautious and dispassionate. But years later the attention returned.
Hammershøi is now not only considered one of the greatest Nordic artists, he has also regained
international recognition thanks to exhibitions of his work in venues such as Musée d'Orsay in Paris in
1997-98 and the Guggenheim Museum in New York in 1998.
In recent years, the National Gallery of Denmark has followed suit and presented a large Hammershøi
exhibition in Copenhagen in 2012 and another exhibition in New York in October 2015.
International Auction at Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers, Bredgade 33, Copenhagen
Preview: 25-29 February
Hammershøi Auction: 1 March
Auction Period: 1-10 March
Exhibition in Paris and London
Prior to the auction in Copenhagen, the offered works by Hammershøi will be exhibited at Drouot in Paris
on 10 and 11 February and at the Danish Embassy in London on 22 and 23 February, at events
coordinated by Frederik Bruun Rasmussen.
Deadline for consignments for the auction is Monday 25 January 2016.
Press Photo
Frederik Bruun Rasmussen next to three of the auction lots by Vilhelm Hammershøi.
Vilhelm Hammershøi: Interior with a woman seen from the back. Strandgade 30, 1904. Sign. V. H. Oil
on canvas. 70 x 54 cm. Estimate: DKK 4-6 million / € 535,000-805,000.
Vilhelm Hammershøi: Portrait of the artist's wife, Ida, born Ilsted, approx. 20 years old (1892). Sign.
VH and certified on the back "Painted by V. Hammershøi certified by Ida Hammershøi". Oil on canvas. 40
x 32 cm. Estimate: DKK 1-1.5 million / € 135,000-200,000.
Vilhelm Hammershøi: ”Landskab fra Kongevejen ved Gentofte” (Landscape from the King’s road at
Gentofte). 1892. Sign. VH. Oil on canvas. 32 x 46 cm. Estimate: DKK 1 million / € 135,000.
Best regards
Eva Helsted
Press Manager, MA.
Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers
Sundkrogsgade 30 · DK-2150 Nordhavn
Tel: +45 8818 1072
http://www.bruun-rasmussen.dk