The eagerly anticipated auction will feature heavyweights with pieces from Bencab, HR Ocampo, Amorsolo, Ronald Ventura, and Lao Lianben, to name a few.
Salcedo Auctions’ inaugural March edition of The Well-Appointed Life auction happens this Saturday, March 18, starting at 2 P.M. Interested buyers can view the lots until today until Friday, March 17, 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. or preview the online catalogue and register to bid at salcedoauctions.com. This auction will feature rare collectors’ items you shouldn’t miss.
Highlights include selections from Hans Brumann’s “After Artists” jewelry collection, paintings by BenCab, H.R. Ocampo, Lee Aguinaldo, J Elizalde Navarro, Betsy Westendorb, and Ramon Orlina.
It’s a chance for collectors to bid on one of Betsy Westendorp’s biggest landscapes to go to auction, one of H.R. Ocampo’s last paintings completed in the year of his passing; an important painting from Lee Aguinaldo’s Green Circulation series; a very rare Rolex Daytona “Big Red.”
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Now held twice a year, a huge selection from The Well Appointed Life’s auction was carefully chosen for their quality, rarity, and beauty. The “Important Philippine Art” sale, which features pieces created by Filipino artists, is without a doubt the barometer of the Philippine art market. The “Connoisseur Collection” also includes a variety of watches, from the limited-edition Big Bang Hublot to a rare vintage Cosmograph Daytona “Big Red” Sigma Dial Rolex and magnificent jewelry items in which pieces from Hans Brumann stood out for its uniqueness.
THE BIGWIGS
“The Untitled” (40 x 30 in.) by Hernando R. Ocampo, a national artist regarded as one of the forefathers of Philippine abstraction, is included in this batch of the auction. His training in advertising gave him the ability to expertly design forms and shapes that suggested motion, depth, and dimension. His method in creating this piece gives the canvas’s ultimate flatness a sense of depth and dimension, producing a sense of movement and fluidity. The richness of his vision, the shapes and forms that emerge from his canvases, and the possibilities embodied in his non figurative manner are all explored by the observer through his works. This particular work of Ocampo is estimated to fetch about Php 8,000,000 at the least.
“Head and Zen” is a masterful work of contemporary Philippine artist Lao Lianben. The artist offers a unique and intriguing synthesis of abstract composition and Zen spirituality with his works. The painting features a dark and textured head-like shape at the bottom, with the swirling and comet-like tail extending towards the top of the canvas. This artwork’s provenance comes from Christie’s auction ‘Asian 20th Century Art’ from 2012.
The painting’s dynamic and fluid shapes invites the viewer to contemplate the concept of Zen enlightenment, with its emphasis on inner peace, mindfulness, and the interconnectedness of all things. His innovative use of abstract forms and colors, combined with subtle references to Zen philosophy, make this painting a unique and exceptional piece of art. This artwork is estimated to sell at the Php 7,000,000 range.
Another highlight of the auction is the painting dubbed “Untitled (Two Women)” which showcases Bencab’s ability to reclaim the colonial lands and superimpose a modern take on the portrayal of Filipinos. The women in the painting are depicted in a mundane yet empowering scene, walking forward with chin up, looking head on. This portrayal of Filipinos in a position of strength which is a refreshing departure from the traditional depiction of women as passive and demure. The two women walking forward can be seen as a metaphor for the progress the country has made since gaining independence from colonial rule. The painting captures the spirit of hope and optimism and serves as a powerful reminder of the strength and resilience of the Filipino people. This piece is expected to fetch at least Php 14,000,000.
JEWELRY INSPIRED BY MASTERS
As an homage to the masters, some pieces of Swiss jewelry maker Hans Brumann were listed in the auction as well. The collection includes rings that convey the geometry in Gustav Klimt’s most famous works, the sensuality of Picasso’s forms, and the musicality of Georges Braque, interspersed with his cubist inclinations.
Impy Pilapil’s organic forms are voluptuously expressed in a bangle of wood and gold, while Arturo Luz’s devotion to linear symmetry is apparent in a pair of white gold earrings, embedded with lapis lazuli accents.
Brumann attributes his success to his Filipino goldsmiths, who mirror his passion for delivering excellent craftsmanship, as well as drawing on age-old traditions and techniques of the trade. Above all, the jewelry artist takes immense pride in the fact that his creations are all Philippine-made. And there seems to be no retirement for this octogenarian jewelry maker just yet. “That’s true,” says Brumann, when we commented on how inspired he still appears. “It comes with my profession and my love of what I’m doing. That’s very important.”
Preview the online catalogue and register to bid at salcedoauctions.com.
Banner photo courtesy of Salcedo Auctions.
