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16 INTER Which works by famous Impressionist and Modern artists have been sold in Koller’s auctions in recent years? CK: We have had the pleasure of offering works by al- most all the great French Impressionists including Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisley, and Caillebotte, as well Jara and Cyril Koller, of Koller’s Impressionist and Modern Art Department A family affair as Signac, van Gogh, van Dongen, Matisse, Dufy, Utrillo, Vlaminck, Derain and Picasso. The list of great modern artists could go on and on: Cézanne, Dalí, Miró, Jaw- lensky, Kandinsky are just a few. The ‘Who’s Who’ of German classical modernism has also been well rep- resented in our sales, including Liebermann, Corinth, Kirchner, Heckel, Beckmann, Nolde and Macke. Which of these is your personal favourite? CK: My favourite is a large-format portrait of a woman by Alexei von Jawlensky, which I unexpectedly found in a relatively unassuming apartment more than twenty years ago. This discovery was one of my first, which makes it a particularly fond memory for me. JK: I have several favourite objects. One of them is certainly a portrait of an Egyptian woman by Kees van Dongen. We had received a letter with small, low-res- olution images of a few potentially important paint- ings, and based on that I made an appointment. Three of us drove several hours to the client armed with all of our appraising paraphernalia, ultra-violet lamps, etc. When we arrived, we found ourselves in front of an unassuming grey concrete apartment building. I was worried for a moment that the works might only be prints, and that we had come in vain. When we entered the small flat, however, I was quickly proved wrong: hanging on the wall – among a row of five other van Dongens – was this marvellous red and yellow portrait. Van Dongen happens to be one of my favourite artists, so this was a wonderful sight! Vincent Van Gogh. Pont de Clichy. Oil on canvas. 55 × 46 cm. Sold in 2013 for CHF 6.5 million to an international private collection. Emil Nolde. ‘Doppelbild (Sie seltsames Licht)’. 1918. Oil on canvas. 60.6 × 56.2 cm. Sold in 2018 for CHF 1 million to a private collection, Switzerland. Impressionist and Modern Art has been a core element of Koller’s auctions since our founding over 60 years ago. Today this department is headed by the second and third generation of the Koller family, Cyril and Jara Koller, and auctions are held twice a year. In the following interview, the Kollers discuss the art market, their personal preferences, and what it's like to work as a father-daughter team. ©No lde Stiftung, Seebüll