LONDON — Christie’s is opening a window on the life and imagination of the late Hubert de Givenchy, with plans to auction 1,200 works of art, sculpture and furniture from two of the late designer’s homes, in Paris and the Loire Valley.
The sale includes French and European furniture as well as sculpture and paintings ranging from the Old Masters to modern and contemporary works. They were all on display at the late designer’s homes at the Hôtel d’Orrouer in Paris and the Château du Jonchet in the Loire Valley.
Christie’s Paris said the collection includes “many exceptional objects” unseen on the market for decades, as well as more recent works acquired toward the end of the designer’s collecting journey.
The live sale will take place in Paris from June 14 to 17, while an online one will run from June 8 to 23.
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Christie’s noted that the timing of the sale’s announcement coincides with the 70th anniversary of the first haute couture collection that de Givenchy presented in Paris on Feb. 2, 1952. De Givenchy died on March 10, 2018, at age 91.
A pre-sale exhibition will take place on June 8 at Christie’s in Paris, while highlights from the collection will be revealed this spring and exhibited as part of a worldwide tour of key cities, including Palm Beach, Fla., New York and Hong Kong.
Cécile Verdier, president of Christie’s France, said the designer’s fine and decorative art collection combines de Givenchy’s “clear aesthetic vision for his interiors with some of the most important collections in the world.“
Charles Cator, deputy chairman of Christie’s International, noted that de Givenchy was, for many years, a member of the international board of Christie’s “and entrusted the house twice during his lifetime with the sale of objects from his collection.”
Cator said the June auctions are an opportunity “to celebrate Hubert de Givenchy as one of the greatest ambassadors of French taste and to tell his story of the art of living, collecting and the elegance he sought to capture in all things.”
In a statement, de Givenchy’s family said they wanted to “share the elegance and aesthetic heritage” that he and his lifelong companion Philippe Venet passed on and “inscribe their vision in the history of art and interior design in a universal way.”
De Givenchy’s history with Christie’s stretches back to 1993, when he worked with the auction house on the sale of some of his early 18th-century furniture and artwork in Monaco. The event brought together paintings, furniture, sculpture and silverware in an event that set a template for celebrity lifestyle and interiors auctions.
In 1997, de Givenchy became chairman of the supervisory board of Christie’s France and a member of its international board. In 2012, the designer curated the exhibition “La Galerie de Girardon evocation par Hubert de Givenchy” at Christie’s in Paris.
In 2014, de Givenchy assisted Christie’s Paris with the “Empire” exhibition, which included several pieces from his personal collection, and in 2017 Christie’s Paris held the sale of de Givenchy’s collection of works by Diego Giacometti, “Les Giacometti de Hubert de Givenchy,” which reflected the designer’s long friendship with the artist.