Biography
The Danish artist and sculptor Gunnar Aagaard Andersen studied arts and crafts between 1936 and 1939, then fine arts at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts (1940-46), further studies took him to Paris, Italy and England. In the course of his career he worked with various materials. He created illustrations, in painting he is counted among the representatives of concrete art, and in the 1950s he provided designs for textiles and carpets. In our auction on 5 December 2023, we are offering two objects that illustrate the artist's versatility:
Seating object 'Portrait of My Mother's Chesterfield', 1964
Aagaard Andersen became famous with this armchair, which is represented in numerous museum design collections such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York. 'Portrait of My Mother's Chesterfield' made of polyurethane is innovative and unusual in every respect. As the title suggests, the seating object functions conceptually as an ironic commentary on the cozy English leather club chair, which stands as a symbol of a conservative patriarchal world. Aagaard Andersen created a counter-image, an armchair in which the inside is turned inside out, thus deconstructing the idea of this classic piece of seating furniture. Historical photos show the artist at work with liquid polyurethane and how the armchair appears to grow out of the floor layer by layer. Unsuitable for mass production, only a few examples were made. The seating object oscillates between art object and functional furniture. In its striking visual language of form, it resembles designs by Italian Radical Design and plays with elements of Pop Art. In its choice of material and flowing silhouette, it anticipates designs by Gaetano Pesce. The armchair comes from the artist's estate. Originally made in white, it was later dyed brown by the artist.
'Composition' carpet, 1952
Red, yellow, black and white - the carpet is reminiscent of some of the artist's paintings. Now Aagaard Andersen transfers the rectangular blocks of color from the wall to the floor, into another dimension. Clear, vibrant colors and geometric shapes create a lively and dynamic interplay. And the cut-off, illegible lettering in different sizes and arrangements bring balance to the composition, in the spirit of De Stijl, which played an important role in Concrete Art.
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