With a Gourmet Gazette Slide Show
Paris, France — It is one of the most tasteful and powerful collections that has ever been auctioned off in Paris. The stunning art, object, furniture and book collections of the great French couture designer Hubert de Givenchy are being auctioned by the house of Christie’s Paris while a parallel exhibition is taking place at one of the city’s most prestigious galleries, the Galerie Kugel, paying tribute to the designer and his unparalleled taste. Paintings by the masters, delectable scenes from the hunt, an object in very green malachite (a color dear to the designer) and the furnishings, the furnishings that are divinely aesthetic and comfortable all at once. Among the treasures on auction are Alberto Giacometti’s Woman Walking and Pablo Picasso’s Faun with a Spear.
Hubert Taffin de Givenchy was born into an aristocratic family of Venetian origin in the city of Beauvais, France north of Paris. He would work with leading Parisian couture designers before creating his own house in 1952, 70 years ago. Audrey Hepburn, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Mona Bismarck and the Duchess of Windsor were among the elegant and iconic women that he dressed. He was a man of exceptional taste and throughout his life he put together an exceptional collection of classic and modern objects and furnishings which he literally staged in ultimate refinement in his various homes yet in an inviting and comfortable way. Christie’s has organized this exceptional sale of the collection of art works that were brought together in his last two residences, the hotel d’Orrouer, a mansion in the 7th arrondissement of Paris and the Manoir du Jonchet in the Eure-et-Loire region west of Paris. The sale held live (June 14th to June 17th) and on-line (June 8th to June 23rd) features more than 1,200 lots of French and European furniture and works of art including sculpture and paintings from the Old Masters to Modern and Contemporary Works. These are works chosen by someone with a meticulous eye and exquisite taste: Hubert de Givenchy.
“We are extremely honored that the family of Hubert de Givenchy has entrusted Christie’s with the auction of his fine and decorative art collection, which combines his clear aesthetic vision for his interiors, with some of the most important collections in the world, » commented Cécile Verdier, President of Christie’s France.Christie’s was founded in 1766 and is a world leader in the art and luxury business renowned for its live and online auctions.
Meanwhile the house of Kugel, one of the world’s leading galleries, is paying tribute to the great couturier’s unique taste by bringing together a group of furniture and objects that once belonged to him. Among the objects on display is an extraordinary cabinet decorated with Apollo’s chariot by André-Charles Boulle, which has not been shown to the public since 1994. The Kugel family had closely collaborated with Mr. de Givenchy who regularly visited the Galerie Kugel, and he entrusted this iconic Apollo chariot cabinet of his collection, his first purchase in the late 1950s to the Kugel brothers in 1992. The cabinet contained Mr. de Givenchy’s Renaissance Limoges enamels which he was particularly fond of. With the fifth generation of the Kugel family at its helm, the exquisite Kugel Galerie, an unmissable stop for collectors, curators and art lovers, is worth a visit at anytime, by appointment outside of special exhibitions.
©Trish Valicenti for The Gourmet Gazette
Slide Show
Christie’s auction house in Paris. Photo ©Anna Buklovska, courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette 
Hubert de Givenchy ©John Cowann, Vogue 1969 ©Condé Nast, Photo courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette 
Hôtel d’Orrouer, rue de Grenelle, the home of Hubert de Givenchy in Paris. ©Christie’s France, F. Halard, courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette 
Pablo Picasso’s Faun with a Spear 1947 from the hubert de Givenchy Collection on auction at Christie’s. ©Christie’s Images Limited 2022 courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette 
The early 19th century Medici vase, Russia, veneered in malachite. ©Christie’s France, F. Halard, courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette 
Giacometti’s Woman Walking from the Hubert de Givenchy Collection being auctioned by Christie’s. Photo courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette 
The extraordinary cabinet decorated with Apollo’s chariot by André-Charles Boulle at the Galerie Kugel. Photo courtesy Galerie Kugel and that once belonged to Mr. de Givenchy. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette Close-up of the extraordinary cabinet decorated with Apollo’s chariot by André-Charles Boulle at the Galerie Kugel and that once belonged to Mr. de Givenchy. Photo courtesy Galerie Kugel. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette Vassou, pair of Blondel de Gagny vases mounted in gilt bronze Paris, circa 1760-1765. By François-Nicolas Vassou at the Galerie Kugel and that once belonged to Mr. de Givenchy. Photo courtesy Galerie Kugel. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette Hubert de Givenchy’s Green Room re-created at Christie’s. Photo ©Nina Slavecheva courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette Portrait of Hubert de Givenchy, a man of exceptional taste, style and talent. Photo ©Victor Skrebneski, courtesy Christie’s. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette
Practical Information
Exhibition Christie’s Paris June 9th to June 14th
Exhibition Galerie Kugel
June 9th to June 15th, 11am – 6pm
Christie’s Auctions
June 14th at 4pm – Théâtre Marigny
June 15th at 10:30am – Théâtre Marigny
June 16th at 10:30am – Christie’s Paris
June 17th at 10:30am – Christie’s Paris
The 2 Online sales
L’art de vivre at the l’hôtel d’Orrouer mansion from 8 to 22 June
L’art de recevoir at the Manoir du Jonchet mansion from 8 to 23 June
Christie’s
9 Av. Matignon
75008 Paris
Tel: + 33 (0)1 40 76 85 85
https://www.christies.com/
Galerie Kugel
25 quai Anatole France
75007 Paris
Tel: + 33 (0) 1 42 60 86 23
https://www.galeriekugel.com/en/
Categories: Everything Gourmet, Gourmet Fair
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