Germany

Italian design is in the spotlight at Quittenbaum in Munich on March 19.

Malagan figures played an integral and complex role in the rituals of the tribes of New Ireland, the north-eastern province of Papua New Guinea.

A German collector consigned 28 carpets for the November 25 sale at Rippon Boswell (25% buyer’s premium) in Wiesbaden.

The work of Belgian artist celebrated in his day is coveted by modern collectors judging by latest sales.

Only a few months after several ornamental pieces of silver by the Viennese designer Dagobert Peche, one of the leading lights of the Wiener Werkstätte, caused a sensation in Düsseldorf (ATG No 2613, the auction house Kinsky (28% buyer’s premium) achieved an impressive result for a work by him.

The decision by Cologne auction house Lempertz (26% buyer’s premium) to postpone the sale of Max Pechstein’s 1909 Expressionist work Selbstbildnis, liegend (Self Portrait, lying down) from June to December 1 proved to be a wise one.

While auction prices for works of art from Japan can scarcely compete with those achieved for pieces from China, the sale at Hargesheimer (28% buyer’s premium) in Düsseldorf on November 30 showed that there is still a healthy market for netsuke.

When it was last on public view, at a Berlin exhibition in 1981, the Portrait of a Black Courtier was attributed to the early 18th century Prussian court painter Antoine Pesne.

By all accounts, the Bulgarian prince and later Tsar Ferdinand I was a passionate railway enthusiast.

Once believed to be by Rubens, work hidden away during the war is now thought to be a copy by a pupil

The combination of a pre-eminent maker and a perfect provenance made a late 18th century pocket chronometer one of the most sought-after pieces at Dr Crott (25% buyer’s premium) in Mannheim on November 18.

The biggest surprise of Wendl’s (21% buyer’s premium) extensive general sale in Rudolstadt on October 25-28 was the seemingly never-ending exchange of bids for an early 18th century Old Master which had a starting price of €900.

A private collector in London had his work cut out to secure a painting on offer for €2000-3000 at Nagel (29.5% buyer’s premium) in Stuttgart.

Without doubt, the sensation of the German auction season was the emergence of a sketchbook belonging to the German romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich at Grisebach (32/27% buyer’s premium) in Berlin.

The textile works by Alighiero Boetti are instantly recognisable with their often geometric designs and brightly coloured embroidery.

Konrad Klapheck, who died at the end of July aged 88, was a pioneer of German pop art and is credited with the invention of so-called Machine Paintings.

The career of the French artist Pierre Soulages spanned over 80 years. He died in 2022 at the age of 102.

Art Recovery International has assisted in the return of a painting missing from Germany since the Second World War.

A spectacular pair of English giltwood and lacquer cabinets emerged for sale in Germany.

Now in its 14th year, the art fair Highlights is way past the status of a newcomer and has become an established up-market event in the autumn calendar.