Robert Klippel - Good As Gold

By David Hulme & Brigitte Banziger, on 13-Jun-2013

It is not every day that one finds an Australian artist's work given pride of place in a top tier art gallery at the world's most spectacular art fair. That is exactly the case with two sculptures and two works on paper by Robert Klippel (1920 - 2001) showcased on his own wall at Art Basel with Galerie Gmuryznska, founded in 1965, with commercial spaces in Zurich, Zug and St. Moritz, which attracts high rolling art collectors from around the globe, with 300 private jets rumored to land at Basel airport.

It is not every day that one finds an Australian artist's work given pride of place in a top tier art gallery at the world's most spectacular art fair. That is exactly the case with two sculptures and two works on paper by Robert Klippel showcased on his own wall at Art Basel with Galerie Gmuryznska.

Jeannette Weiss, head of research at Gmuryznska, is very happy to present the delicate Klippel works. The two collage on paper works from 1989 are priced at US$18,000 and US$12,000 respectively. 'Quartz Hill, 1988' made of 18 carat gold is offered for US$95,000, while 'Plastic Toy Kit Construction, 1967' comes with the heady price tag of US$120,000.

Klippel is in good company at Gmurzynska: he is shown along sculptures by Jacques Lipchitz, Tom Wesselmann, Lucio Fontana and Yves Klein, as well as flat art by Joan Miro, Pablo Picasso, Alexander Calder and Robert Indiana.

A further boon for Klippel's international recognition is undoubtedly the simultaneous show of ten scultpures at 'Art in the Park', a yearly sculpture exhbition at luxury Hotel Baur au Lac in Zurich, a mere five minutes' walk from Gmurzynska gallery.

However, Klippel's work does have some solid secondary market pricing back home.

Christie's achieved his highest recorded price at auction in March 2006 for 'Opus 361 (18 miniature constructions)' from the W.R. Burge collection which sold for $507,000 incl. buyer's premium.

2006 was the high point of sales for Klippel with a number of exceptional works selling for sterling prices, also mostly from the Burge collection which included an unprecedented 26 sculptures and 5 collage works on paper.

2013 has been so far somewhat uninspiring for the artist's prices at auction. The top price so far was set by Deutscher + Hackett in April, when 'Wood Assemblage no. 1178, c.1983', 127 x 27 x 17 cm, achieved $10,800 incl. bp. Two other sales were recorded for bronze sculptures at $7,320 and $4,880 incl. bp.

One thing is for sure: Australian commercial galleries cannot possibly secure these kind of premium prices for Robert Klippel, but clearly the Swiss-based gallery feels he is worth it. Were Klippel to gain a serious foothold with international collectors, we would see his Australian auction prices rise rather steeply.

About The Author

Brigitte Banziger and David Hulme are the principals of Banziger Hulme Fine Art Consultants, established since 2003. With their combined experience of over 40 years, they provide private collectors as well as companies and public institutions with independent expert art valuations. In addition to their appraisals for insurance, family law, deceased estates and market values, they assist clients with transparent advice when buying or selling an individual artwork or an entire collection, for some of Australia’s most significant private collectors. David Hulme is an approved valuer for the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program, and both Brigitte and David are members of the Art Consulting Association of Australia, where David served as President from 2015 to 2019. David Hulme is a regular art market critic and commentator on the Australian art market and has been interviewed by numerous media, including the 'Australian Financial Review', 'The Australian' and 'The Sydney Morning Herald'. He has also been interviewed on Network 10’s 'The Project', on the ABC’s Radio National Breakfast show with Hamish MacDonald, the ABC’s 'The Business' program amongst many others.

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