MARLBOROUGH, MASS.- Bonhams Skinner announced an upcoming sale of Modern Design items, taking place October 2-12, 2022 online at https://skinner.bonhams.com/. Comprising nearly 375 lots, the sale includes over a century of intuitive style and craft, ranging from pottery and lighting to textiles and glass.
Primarily arriving from several private households and lifelong collectors, Bonhams Skinner’s fall sale is sure to have something for budgets of all sizes and collections of all styles. The forthcoming auction arrives on the heels of a well-received August sale by the Modern Design department featuring an impressive array of Murano glass; the second half of this large private collection will be presented here. With 150 lots from the likes of Archimede Seguso, Flavio Poli, Carlo Scarpa, Dino Martens and Ercole Barovier, this is an exciting and eclectic range of glassware that will improve any collection, however casual or completist. This selection will be accompanied by several impressive items of studio glass, including a glass sculpture by the contemporary American artist William Morris (est. $10,000–15,000).
Notable items in the sale come from the echelons of 20th century design, including exquisite examples of household items from the art nouveau and Arts & Crafts movements. A significant collection of Marblehead pottery appears in the sale, arriving from the household of a meticulous private consignor. Specialist favorites include a rare vase decorated with geese (est. $4,000-6,000), as well as a lotus-form bowl (est. $2,000-3,000). These pieces, as well as others from the collection, offer exceptional examples of the variety and artistic ingenuity that emerged from the New England workshop at the start of the 20th century.
The sale is also graced with a collection of table lamps from the studio of Louis Comfort Tiffany. Foremost among these is a Geranium Pattern (est. $40,000-60,000), as well as an excellent model of Tiffany’s swirl-and-latticed “Tyler” Pattern (est. $25,000-35,000). Eight additional lamps comprise the collection, including a Poppy Pattern (est. $35,000-55,000).
Furniture within the October auction primarily comprises postwar examples of American and Scandinavian design, and includes impressive and beloved contributions to both national styles. A seven-piece collection of Nakashima furniture, consigned here by the descendent of the original owner, includes a remarkable Conoid bench, c. 1960 (est. $25,000-30,000) which offers a glimpse into George Katsutoshi Nakashima’s remarkable affinity for natural forms.
The eclectic sale is rounded out with a few select textile lots, most notably a collection of vintage Marimekko dresses from the Finnish company’s heyday in the 1960s.
