With € 6 million in sales, 92% sell-through rate, and a 150% increase on starting prices, the Modern and Contemporary Art auction offered a clear and compelling response to those who, even in a more sluggish economic climate, view art as a safe haven—combining cultural significance with solid asset value.
Thanks to a rigorous curatorial vision and a selection based on prestigious provenances and high-profile exhibition histories, the auction once again proved to be a strategic observatory, capable of guiding the choices of a global, discerning, and cautious clientele, far removed from speculative manoeuvres.
At the top of the sales results was Giorgio de Chirico with “Piazza d’Italia” (1953), an oil on canvas of intense metaphysical lyricism, sold for € 448,000, followed by Lucio Fontana’s “Crocifisso” (1952), a glazed ceramic of extraordinary expressive and spiritual power (€ 384,000).
Lot 41
Giorgio de Chirico "Piazza d'Italia" 1953, oil on canvas, cm 40.3x50.2. Signed lower left.
Sold € 448,000
Lot 56
Glazed and hand-painted terracotta with third-firing decoration in white, grey, and gold, cm 58x41.5x12.5. Signed and dated 52 on the reverse.
Sold € 384,000
Among the sculptures, Arnaldo Pomodoro remains a collector favourite with “Rotante” (2002), a bronze work of strong formal dynamism (€ 217,600), while Carla Accardi’s analytical and chromatic painting was notably recognised with “Azzurroverde” from 1987 (€ 204,800). The international market rewarded Roberto Matta’s visionary work “The Re-evolvers” (1951) (€ 179,200), and Igor Mitoraj’s bronze “Stella” (1985) (€ 153,600), confirming the solidity of historically established artists who remain central to contemporary demand.
Lot 141
Arnaldo Pomodoro "Rotante" 2002, bronze, diam. 30 cm. Signed, dated 2002 and numbered 5/8 on the base.
Sold € 70,000 - 100,000
Lot 86
Carla Accardi "Azzurroverde" 1987, vinyl on canvas, 200x110 cm. Signed and dated 87 bottom left. Signed and dated 1987 on the reverse.
Sold € 204,800
Lot 51
Roberto Matta "The Re-evolvers" 1951, oil on canvas, cm 145.5x198.
Sold € 179,200
Lot 34
Igor Mitoraj "Stella" 1985, bronze, cm 66x76x45. Signed and numbered 5/6 lower right.
Sold € 153,600
Italian Informal Art stood out with Emilio Vedova’s “Presenza” (1958), a work of explosive gestural force (€ 140,800), while German artist Anselm Kiefer entered the top ten with “Die Erdzeitalter (20 Jahre Einsamkeit)” (2009) (€ 128,000).
Lot 55
Emilio Vedova "Presenza" 1958, oil on canvas, cm 129.7x57.5. Signed, titled and dated 1958. Venice on the reverse.
Sold € 140,800
Lot 145
Anselm Kiefer "Die Erdzeitalter (20 Jahre Einsamkeit)" 2009, oil and mixed media on photo collage, 162x145 cm (with 178x163 frame).
Sold € 128,000
In the realm of conceptual experimentation, interest in Irma Blank was reaffirmed, represented in the auction by the diptych “Schriftzug = Atemzug” (1988) (€ 96,000), alongside Conrad Marca-Relli, master of American abstraction, whose “X-L-1.80” reached €83,200.
Lotto 84
Irma Blank "Schriftzug=Atemzug, 29.5.1988" 1988, acrylic on canvas, cm 200x200 (diptych). Signed, titled and dated 29/5/88 on reverse.
Sold € 96,000
Lot 57
Conrad Marca-Relli "X-L-1-80" 1980, collage and mixed media on canvas, cm 157.5x191. Signed at lower left. Signed and titled on the reverse.
Sold € 83,200
Closing the selection of top lots was the cultured and cinematic irony of Francesco Vezzoli with “The Face of Mae West as a Surrealist Apartment with Anita Ekberg and the Eyes of Cate Blanchett” (2007) (€ 70,400).
The session on 29 May dedicated to Prints and Multiples also saw excellent results, confirming the growing interest in this segment, increasingly followed by the new generation of collectors.
The overall outcome not only confirms the strength of the sector but also the department’s ability to act as a compass for today’s market, offering collectors and investors intelligent, reliable, and resilient benchmarks—even during periods of broader caution. A result that rewards a conscious approach, capable of interpreting market transformations without ever compromising on quality or the visionary potential inherent in every collection.
Lotto 131
Francesco Vezzoli "The face of Mae West as a surrealist apartment with Anita Ekberg and the eyes of Cate Blanchett" 2007, laser print on canvas with metal embroidery in artist's frame, 76x56 cm.
Sold € 70,400