Auctions and their history
Bolland & Marotz: quality is above all
 |
|
|
In a few weeks a Bremen-based auction house Bolland & Marotz will be holding its next auction of paintings and decorative and applied art. We would like to tell readers of the “Antiq.Info” magazine about the history, traditions and achievements of this company. |
Business of Mr. Marotz started as a hobby. He took his interest in antiques when he was a young man. Later he opened his own small antique shop. Mr. Bolland was his regular customer through the early 1970s. In 1974 they decided to establish their own auction house. Since then Bolland & Marotz is the only auction house in the area of Bremen, and Mr. Bolland and Mr. Marotz are its owners and directors.
At the moment the company employs ten people including specialists in porcelain, paintings, glass and art of XX century. Bolland & Marotz holds four auctions a year, each comprising from 1,200 to 1,500 lots. The company does not plan to hold more sales as the owners have always paid great attention to the high quality of auctioned collections.
Bolland & Marotz usually offer a wide range of exceptional works of art including furniture, silver, porcelain and German and foreign paintings. The Bolland & Marotz sales also feature a variety of Russian silver, porcelain, paintings, icons and works by Faberge firm. The volume of sales of Russian art has been constantly growing since 2000. Works by Russian masters as well as Oriental art attracts attention of numerous collectors and art dealers from all over the world. By now Bolland & Marotz has not got regular clients from Russia. The majority of Russian bidders usually buy a few objects of art at the Bremen auctions.
One of the record prices at a Bolland & Marotz auction was realized in 1993. That year a flower still-life by Roeland Savery fetched stunning ¤900,000. In 2003 a still-life with a pear and rose by J.J. van der Velde was sold for ¤160,000. In 2001 a Carl Spitzweg’s “Guardian” was hammered at ¤215,000. In 2004 a painting “Allegory of Autumn” by Simone del Tintore with a pre-sale estimate ¤10,000 made impressive ¤150,000. A drawing by Henri Matisse, estimated at a “modest” ¤2,500 was purchased for ¤27,000.
Other highlights include: a pair of candelabra by H. van der Velde acquired in 1988 by a German museum for ¤190,000; two Russian armchairs dated 1800 were sold for ¤80,000 by an anonymous Danish collector.
Last year Bolland & Marotz celebrated its 30th jubilee with a superb auction which featured an unsigned painting by Antonio Canaletto, which was sold for ¤600,000 (estimate ¤300,000), and a Russian vase sold for ¤42,000 (estimate at ¤4,000).
Due to its excellent service and growing expertise level Bolland & Marotz has become an auction house of international importance and repute, attracting a great number of German and foreign bidders.
The auction house publishes splendidly illustrated catalogues. Multi?lingual staff operating twelve telephone lines is ready to assist telephone bidders. Bolland & Marotz will be glad to delivery purchased lots to any country of the world.