Prefab Shelter Disappoints at Auction
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
A prefabricated hangar-like shelter which was the centerpiece of Sotheby’s Important 20th Century Design sale sold for a disappointing $602,500 on Saturday, well short of the auction house’s low estimate of $800,000.
The Artek Pavilion, a 131-foot-long corridor of interlocking modules, was designed by the Japanese architect Shigeru Ban and built for the 2008 Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan. The pavilion was touted in advance of the sale as an architectural structure that could nevertheless appeal to collectors of Modern design.
On Saturday, however, more traditional tastes prevailed, as several Tiffany lamps dominated the bidding. The top lot was an “apple blossom” table lamp, circa 1905, which sold for $932,500, well above the estimate of $250,000-$350,000. A “Wisteria” table lamp from the famed manufacturer sold for $602,500, and several other Tiffany lamps sold for more than $200,000.
