Art enthusiasts await some social events as much as they wait important exhibitions, such as Christie’s announcement of auctioning the memorabilia of French fashion designer Hubert de Givenchy, who was fond of collecting rare paintings and sculptures.
With a unique collection featuring over 1,000 pieces, the auction, which will be held over several days in June, is expected to lure museum collectors and managers.
Givenchy, who left this world in 2018, was the favorite couturier of many of the 20th century’s celebrities including artists and princesses. He was known to be the closest friend and preferred designer of the late Hollywood star Audrey Hepburn. The handsome tall aristocrat lived his life surrounded with the fanciest furniture, including his famous green salon featured in paintings of many renowned artists.
Givenchy debuted his career in fashion 70 years ago. Since his first fashion show and first collection in Paris, on February 2, 1952, he has become one of the most prominent names in the world of details and haute couture. Although he had a very busy fashion life, the designer was passionate of unique artworks he collected and displayed in his house in Neuilly (Paris), and his country mansion in the Loire Valley.
According to Christie’s announcement, the auction will feature 1,100 pieces including paintings by historic and contemporary legendary artists, sculptures, silverware, and crystals, as well as French and European furniture. As usual, the auction will be preceded with a one-week exhibition at Christie’s House near the Champs Elysees.
Selected pieces from the collection are also set to embark on a tour to visit New York, Palm Beach (Florida), and Hong Kong before they return to the French capital. The auction will also include top-notch pieces that the art market missed for decades, in addition to modern artworks that the late designer owned in the last few years of his life.
