The Dorotheum auction week, which will be held between 30th May and 2nd June 2017, will be all about modern and contemporary art, with the auction of Contemporary Art on 31st May placing a particular emphasis on the "Informel" movement. These abstract works, originating in the spirit of renewal that defined post-war modernism, foreground the visualisation of the pictorial process and the painter's spontaneous gesture. The term "Informel", frequently cited in conjunction with "Lyrical Abstraction" and "Tachism", was originally coined in 1952 by the French art critic Michel Tapié.
 
Under the heading of informal art, the auction features diverse works such as the line images of Hans Hartung, the calligraphic-dynamic paintings of Georges Mathieu and Emilio Vedova, as well as the expansive material paintings of Nicolas De Stael. In De Stael's “Composition“ of 1950, Dorotheum is able to present a particularly early example (€200,000 – 300,000).
 
Informel – fast and spontaneous
For Georges Mathieu, who was known for producing paintings several meters long in front of a live audience, it was speed and spontaneity that mattered most: “I believe the introduction of speed in the Western aesthetic to be a phenomenon of critical importance. Naturally, it is derived from the fact that painting is gradually being freed from the requirement to reference: to reference nature, the canons of beauty, a first draft. Speed therefore means the definitive abandonment of artisanal methods of painting in favour of purer methods of creation. Is it not the only mission of the artist to create, not to copy?”
 
Smoke and grid – Wesselmann and Polke
One of the auction's highlights will no doubt be a striking image by the North American Pop Art erotic artist Tom Wesselmann, who is well-known for his doll-like “American Nudes“ that are often depicted smoking against a colourful background. The painting now presented at Dorotheum shows just a single cigarette with the smoke rising from it developing a fascinating life of its own (€ 380,000 – 480,000). Individuality and archaism meet in one of the auction's most intriguing items which is a sculpture  by Fernando Botero: starting with early depictions of the Virgin Mary, the “Mother and Child“ theme is found throughout the history of Western art and on this occasion, Fernando Botero contributes an entirely profane, voluminous version in bronze, which was typical of the artist (Modern Art Auction, €180,000 – 220,000). Erwin Wurm's blackened bronze figure, "Mutter" (Mother), meanwhile, has been reduced to a hot water bottle resting on shoes (1/5, €70,000 – 120,000).
 
Sigmar Polke's investigation looks into the origin of painting itself, occasionally with a hint of irony. As early as the 1960s, his grid paintings anticipated the appearance of digital technology. These delicate grid lines, inverting the function of the matrix dot, lend a mesmerising depth to Sigmar Polke's large-format, untitled work on paper from 1998, which is now being offered at Dorotheum. The honeycomb structure consists of black lines, varying in thickness, which allow the viewer great associative freedom: bee hive, facetted eye, brain, coiled wire… such associations are as diverse as they are individual and subjective (€250,000 – 300,000).
 
Sixties avant-garde – Germany and Italy
German and Italian avant-garde art of the 1960s have always enjoyed a particular success at Dorotheum. Works by Günther Uecker, Herbert Zangs, Gotthard Graubner or Heinz Mack offer collectors a rich choice. Pictorial objects by Enrico Castellani and Agostino Bonalumi, or a graffiti covered “Concetto Spaziale“ by Lucio Fontana dating to 1960, provide excellent examples of contemporary efforts to lend the panel painting a material, spatial dimension.
 
Major names from Austria – Klimt to Zobernig
As far as Austrian art is concerned, the auction presents works by Otto Muehl, Franz West, Herbert Brandl and Heimo Zobernig. Maria Lassnig's singular œuvre continues to generate increasing international attention and exhibition activity. One of her self-portraits, “Körperzustandsbilder“, will be included in the auction as a charcoal drawing (€35,000 – 50,000). The modern art auction on 30th May will also include works by Albin Egger-Lienz, Alfons Walde, Gustav Klimt and Carl Moll.

AUCTION WEEK
Modern Art 30th may 2017,6 pm
Contemporary Art 31st may 2017, 6 pm, Part I 1st june 2017, 5 pm, Part II
Jewellery 1st june 2017, 2 pm
Wrist and Pocket Watches 2nd june 2017, 4 pm
Viewing from 20th may 2017
Venue Palais Dorotheum, Vienna 1, Dorotheergasse 17