Join Christie’s in Berlin

27–29 April 2018


This April, Christie’s invites you to a series of special events in Berlin celebrating the very best of making and collecting art in Germany. Located in the Czech Embassy and Cultural Centre, a Brutalist architectural gem, our exhibition Beauties & Beasts is complemented by a number of talks and tours, open to all.

Featured Exhibition: Beauties & Beasts

ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

Curated by Tim Schmelcher, our non-selling exhibition Beauties & Beasts explores the fundamental duality of art – the ideal of beauty and the fascination with the terrible – by presenting outstanding works of art and craftsmanship of all periods, cultures, mediums and materials, created or collected in Germany and the Holy Roman Empire. With free entry, discover captivating works by artists including Lucas Cranach, Albrecht Dürer, Martin Kippenberger and Thomas Struth.

VIEWING
27 April 2018, 11am – 9pm
28 & 29 April 2018, 11am – 7pm

Czech Centre Berlin
Wilhelmstrasse 44
10117 Berlin

CONTACT
 Tim Schmelcher
tschmelcher@christies.com
+44 (0) 20 7389 2268


Highlights

  • Joseph Heintz the Elder (1564–1609)

    Leda and the Swan, 1605
    oil on copper
    45 x 37 cm.

    Private collection, Augsburg

  • Max Pechstein (1881–1955)

    Forest Scene, 1910
    oil on canvas
    68 x 79.5 cm.

    Private collection

  • Otto Dix (1891–1969)

    Two Girls on a Sunday, c.1922
    gouache and pencil on paper
    53 x 39 cm.

    Private collection, Germany

  • Hans Hoffmann (1545–1591)

    Hare amongst Plants, 1582
    watercolour and gouache with gum arabic on vellum
    62.3 x 58 cm.

    Private collection, Switzerland

  • Emil Nolde (1867–1956)

    South Sea Islander, 1914
    watercolour on greenish paper
    53 x 39.5 cm.

    Stiftung Rolf Horn, Schleswig-Holsteinisches Landesmuseum, Schloss Gottorf, Schleswig

  • Franz von Stuck (1863–1928)

    Sin, 1893 pastel, crayon and oil on board
    48.8 x 43.4 cm.

    Private collection, Germany

  • Conrad Felixmüller (1897–1977)

    Portrait Otto Ritschl (Painter from Wiesbaden), 1920
    oil on canvas
    85 x 75 cm.

    Private collection, Germany

  • A marble head of Athena Parthenos

    Late 1st – early 2nd century A.D.
    marble
    39 cm.

    Private collection, Berlin

Lectures & tours

Lecture: From David to David – 18th Century Ebenistery to Contemporary Design
The Earl of Snowdon

27 April 2018, 11:30am – 12:30pm
Lecture Hall, Embassy of the Czech Republic in Germany

Places limited – registration essential

Guided tour: Defining the German Aesthetic
Aliki Braine

28 April 2018, 11:30am – 12:30pm
Exhibition Hall, Czech Center Berlin

This interactive talk focuses on the nature of German art and asks what defines the German aesthetic. Aliki Braine will deliver an object-led tour of the exhibition whilst exploring geographical notions of beauty and taste, the relationship of German art with craftsmanship, and the connections between historical and contemporary German art.

Places limited – registration essential

Guided tour: Beauties & Beasts
Tim Schmelcher

29 April 2018, 11:30am – 12:30pm
Exhibition Hall, Czech Center Berlin

Beauties & Beasts curator Tim Schmelcher leads a tour of the exhibition. Tim will explore how the objects reflect the great history of making, collecting, researching and exhibiting art in the German-speaking world, and how they represent a fundamental duality within art: the ideal of beauty and the fascination with the terrible.

Places limited – registration essential

Special features


Publications

Exhibition Catalogue: Beauties & Beasts

A beautifully illustrated catalogue has been created to accompany our non-selling exhibition Beauties & Beasts, including thumbnail images and a brief description of every work on view.

View Catalogue

Christie’s Magazine: Art & Collecting in Germany

A special edition of Christie’s Magazine has been published to accompany Beauties & Beasts, a major exhibition organised by Christie’s to coincide with Berlin Gallery Weekend. It will bring together outstanding works of fine and decorative art that reflect the history of making, collecting, researching and exhibiting art in the German-speaking world, from the Renaissance to the present. The Magazine features a long-read interview with art collectors Christian and Karen Boros, a visual documentation of Berlin’s most fascinating buildings chosen by the architect David Chipperfield and recommendations on what to see in Germany this month.

Buy Now

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Luxury International Highlights
Berlin, 25–27 April 2018

Exhibited alongside Beauties & Beasts are highlights from Christie’s Handbags, Jewellery and Watches departments. Testament to German watchmaking talent and the appreciation of German and European collectors, treasures on view include a tourbillon wristwatch by A. Lange & Söhne, a matte Himalaya Niloticus crocodile Birkin handbag, an incredibly rare purplish-pink diamond ring and a Kashmir sapphire ring by Cartier.

CHRISTIE'S EDUCATION SHORT COURSE

Mapping a Career in the Art World: Berlin
25–27 April 2018

Join Christie's Education for a special three-day course where you will meet leading art world professionals who share their own career paths and advice on how to get into the Berlin art scene. Participants will have the opportunity to visit a private collection and a major corporate collection, and will receive an exclusive invitation to the Christie’s exhibition cocktail reception.

Find out more


Contacts