{"id":1664324,"date":"2026-06-16T15:01:23","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T19:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/observer.com\/?p=1664324"},"modified":"2026-06-16T21:28:54","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T01:28:54","slug":"auction-news-new-york-design-sales-sothebys-phillips-giacometti-royere-bertoia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/observer.com\/2026\/06\/auction-news-new-york-design-sales-sothebys-phillips-giacometti-royere-bertoia\/","title":{"rendered":"New York\u2019s Design Sales Offered a Clearer Picture of What Serious Collectors Want"},"content":{"rendered":"
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From French postwar design and American studio craft to ceramics, Tiffany lamps and contemporary collectible design, buyers at Sotheby’s and Phillips pursued rarity in all its forms. Photo: Louis Blancard \u2022 Art Digital Studio | Courtesy Sotheby's<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On the heels of the $96 million, all-time record-setting Collection of Jean & Terry de Gunzburg – Design Masters<\/a> sale led by Claude Lalanne’s $33.5 million mirrors, Sotheby’s June Design Week generated a combined $27,568,552 across a three-day series of auctions. The summer auction round kicked off on June 9 with the $8.8 million Art & Design from the Collection of Barbara Gladstone<\/a> sale, followed by the $10.5 million Of Form and Color: Art and Design from the Emmanuel de Bayser Collection<\/a> sale on June 10, with the $17.07 million Important Design<\/a> sale on June 11, which presented pieces from the defining aesthetic movements of the 20th and 21st Centuries. Meanwhile, Phillips’ Design<\/a> sale on June 12 realized $2.9 million, with an 89.5 percent sell-through across its 76 lots, with most meeting or exceeding their high estimates.<\/p>\n

Barbara Gladstone’s eye for design<\/h3>\n

Opening the June design round, the highly anticipated trove of 140 lots from legendary dealer Barbara Gladstone squarely met its presale estimate of $6.9-10 million with a solid group of design, prints and photographs that proved how her eye for fine and pioneering practices extended well beyond her ability to pick and champion artistic talent. Most of the design pieces in the sale exceeded estimates, led by one of Jean Prouv\u00e9’s most desirable sideboards, the BA-12, dated circa 1948, which fetched $294,400 against a $120,000-180,000 estimate. Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann’s pair of “Rendezvous P\u00eacheurs de Truite” armchairs more than quadrupled their high estimate, selling for $140,800 (est. $20,000-30,000), while Greta Magnusson-Grossman’s low table climbed to $20,480 from a $5,000-7,000 estimate. Other top lots included Jean Roy\u00e8re’s occasional table, which, after several seasons of strong results, easily exceeded its estimate to sell for $40,960 (est. $25,000-35,000), while a table lamp by Mathieu Mat\u00e9got doubled its high estimate, achieving $20,480, as did the Alexandre Noll lamp, which sold for $38,400 (est. $10,000-15,000). A fantastical Otto Schulz “Paradise” cabinet sold for $44,800, well above its $20,000-30,000 estimate. A pair of “Tre Pezzi” armchairs by Italian designers Franco Albini and Franca Helg sold for $24,320, surpassing a $12,000-18,000 estimate.<\/p>\n

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