Obs 101: Houses are finally back at it

Sottsass Colombo Aulenti Cassina office Shire ABS plastic everything

Hello, Auction Observer back with a vengeance—there simply were not any real auctions until a couple of days ago.

Stuff starts today and goes through Saturday, with a number of lifetime-level pieces (Colombo sofas, rare Aulenti, Cassina, a gauche office chair, Shire, Sottsass, lots of Italian ABS plastic) and a handful of immediate buys (great, intentionally designed items, in the low hundreds or less), some to paid subs, some to everybody. No housekeeping… right to the furniture.

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Obs 101

von Nessen floor lamp, Astoria: Ends Thurs… wild lamp… of the quiet variety. As in more expressive than other floor lamps—in a light shade, smaller on top kinda than on bottom—but also very… held back. It does very little. It also has a desk geometry to it (more horizontal up top than floor lamps…) and it all reminds me of the stuff at Think Big:

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The old New York store that sold very simple items blown up to too big a size. (Cool store, 1979 to 1994, New York City.) The lamp designer here, Walter von Nessen, a Deco guy, made lighting that hewed to the above aesthetic (simple and strong L shapes in various iterations), and other ones with shades and a few that are more exciting, like the Anywhere lamp (designed by his wife, Greta, actually, in 1951), the Bulldog (massively wide uptown sconce) and the Stella (simple and perfect double-wide library lamp). Wish there were dates or designer info on the Nessen lighting website… but we are kept in the dark. Nothing by WvN runs for much on auction, ever, kind of a Robert Sonneman market situation… this one is $150

• House also has a pair of Slipper chairs (invisible and really good; like a minimalist HM Chiclet), a simple Corbu stool (and another, with a back), an Eames lounger (from between 1970 and ‘84 and in excellent shape).

Breuer Wassily chairs, N.H.: Ends Wed…What is it about the Wassily? Why is it so… not worth it some days? The chair can be like a beware sign… if one is somewhere, you must leave. And yet… and yet… shorn of context… it’s just… well, who can say a bad word about this thing? There are so many questions… how did its stock drop… why is this one of the handful of pieces, in such a stratified design marketplace, where so little knowledge is out there, that is so beaten into the ground? This is a larger idea… this is an essay… Anyways, among the better quality and provenanced Wassilys I have seen on auction (I still track them even though they are “uncool”)—specifically since these are a Gavina/Italo edition… which has just a perfect geometry (look at these Italian Cescas from around then… so good)… leather in really good shape, no spotting on the chrome, nice tactile sticker. A couple of these sold for $600 (pair) a couple years ago… these ones are also $600.

• House (in New Hampshire where dreams die) also has several excellent Poul Kjaerholm 31/1 chairs (number of auctions… so strong), some not Colombo club chairs (not actually Joe, but solid, fun and poppy—and cheap), a sofa (in the auction) and a coffee table (no way this is JC—still, great). And the prize, this Protzmann credenza I have absolutely linked to before, but which is the star of the show. Just so so excellent. $600

Below: the best of the best.