On Wednesday 24 April we offered the private collection of Count Manfredi della Gherardesca in our auction Alchemy of Design. Manfredi was one of the most colourful, culturally erudite and well-loved figures in the London and international art and design scenes. The culmination of over 3 years of planning, the sale was emblematic and a celebration of Manfredi’s sublime, witty, and entirely original style, offering Modern and Contemporary art, design and photography, Old Master paintings, English and European furniture and sculpture, as well as many exceptional decorative objects from his London and Italian properties. With truly global interest and energetic bidding on the phone, in the room and online, the auction achieved £1,672,700.
Commenting on the sale, Head of Sale, Joe Robinson said, “The results point toward the broad-range respect felt by the many people who engaged in the sale and their compulsion to capture a ‘piece of the rainbow’. Now these objects and his passion have been shared amongst followers old and new as they pass to new owners who have bought safe in the knowledge that they were once adored by this much missed aesthete.”
We would like to thank all those who took part in the auction, helping us to celebrate Manfredi’s legacy, but most of all, we would like to extend our gratitude to his friends and family, who helped share his story, as well as Manfredi himself for his passion, knowledge and eye for the wonderful.
Sign up for auction alerts and our monthly newsletter to receive expert analysis and insights from our specialists and keep up-to-date on forthcoming auctions, valuation days and previews.