Beautiful Chaos, Graanmarkt 13
3 December Live auction results
Under the banner “Beautiful Chaos”, more than 200 lots from the famous Graanmarkt 13 went under the hammer on Wednesday 3 December.
Click here for all the results.
For founders Ilse Cornelissens and Tim Van Geloven, this auction marked the end of an era, as they bid farewell to their carefully curated collection of furniture, artworks, design objects and unique pieces that had given the static building on Antwerp’s Graanmarkt its own distinctive touch for more than a decade.
Maison Margiela once described it as the feeling of entering someone’s private space, where everything has been chosen with care. Dries Van Noten also recognised this approach: a shop where people buy to cherish, not to consume. Many pieces came from local artists whom Cornelissens and Van Geloven know personally. Their style is minimalist but warm, a kind of Belgian “Hygge”.
Although the word sustainability is used indiscriminately these days, the founders took this concept to a higher level. For them, selling was a form of personal expression. They deliberately sold without sales, based on their belief that the solution to “too much” is to buy less. This did not make the start easy, as the shop was somewhat hidden and had no shop window. Nevertheless, with their carefully chosen interior and atmosphere, they managed to redefine the rules of retail. Every object, from the custom-made lighting by PSLab to the minimalist display cases, clothing racks and ceramic bowls, reflects their philosophy of conscious beauty.
The restaurant in the basement was an extension of this philosophy. The interior design brought the garden indoors, with green chairs, flower-shaped lamps and natural materials. The top floor featured an open-plan living area with a fireplace, dining room and space for exhibitions. Graanmarkt 13 became more than just a shop: it was a total experience, where creativity and craftsmanship took centre stage.
During the viewing days, there was already a rush, with registrations to bid online rising to more than 1,000 on the Bernaerts platform (live.bernaerts.eu) alone.
Van Duysen’s pieces and the artworks by Dennis Tyfus, Philip Aguirre, Ysbrant and others were greatly appreciated, as were the Italian-made design objects.
Items by Italian designer Vincenzo De Cotiis sold for international prices. A leather armchair (lot 633) fetched €34,000, an impressive light fixture (lot 693) €11,000, a brass stool €7,000 and a “DC304” cabinet from 2007 €40,000.
The modular wall rack by Dimore Studio from 2008 (lot 605) fetched €15,000, and there was also healthy interest in vintage design: two “Spanish chairs” from 1958 by Borge Mogensen (lot 750) sold for €12,000, three “Lacko armchairs” by Ingmark Thillmark from 1950 fetched €7,500 (lot 685) and a beautiful Albano Poli table lamp changed hands for €6,000 (lot 711).
All the artworks found new homes, sometimes at surprising prices. Ysbrant’s watercolours sold just as quickly as Philip Aguirre’s woodcuts. The prints from Aguirre’s “Edition Populaire” were auctioned for between €450 and €1,000, while a terracotta edition, “Vluchtboot” (Escape Boat), even fetched €2,200. ‘Oi oi’ by Dennis Tyfus, the “king of the Antwerp underground”, a large mixed media work (adhesive tape and oil paint), doubled its estimate (lot 613) and fetched €12,000. The same was true for works by Juan Rodriguez Varon (lot 653, reserve: €14,000/lot 702, reserve: €4,000), Luc Tuymans (“Kristallnacht”, lithograph, lot 726, reserve: €15,000!), Jasper Krabbé (lot 668, reserve: €7,000) and Dirk Van Saene (lot 669, reserve: €5,500) and Bob Verhelst (lot 661, reserve: €2,400) also attracted a remarkable amount of interest.
The highlight of the spectacular auction was obviously Ben Sledsens’ Flower Store. The large canvas (200 x 180 cm) from the early period of the widely acclaimed young artist had a starting bid of €150,000 and was hammered down at €200,000 (lot 698), crowning this fantastic wholesale event.
Ah yes, the Graanmarkt 13 food truck fetched €40,000 (lot 812), but the Jaguar remained in the garage. So no white gloves, but what an auction!