KOLLER VIEW 4/22

9 Flowers instead of Molotov cocktails The artist known only by the pseudonym Banksy is surrounded by numerous myths and rumours – his (or her) identity is unclear. Banksy surreptitiously creates the works in public spaces, but they also increasingly appear on the art market. In 2018, the painting ‘Girl with Balloon’ made headlines by shred- ding itself during a live auction in London. In our December auction, we are offering a three-part colour screenprint: ‘Flower Thrower Triptych (Grey)’ from2019, which takes up the theme of street fighting in an unmistakably Banksianmanner. Here the artist has replaced theMolotov cocktail in the hand of the clichéd masked thrower with a bouquet of flowers, symbolising de-escalation and peace. This is one of Banksy’s most famous subjects, which achieved notoriety through a work painted in 2003 in Beit Sahour, a suburb of Bethlehem. Banksy (1974). Flower Thrower Triptych (Grey). 2019. Colour screenprint. 224/300. Estimate: CHF 180 000/240 000, Prints &Multiples, 1 December 2022 Sophie Ryder Mystical composite creatures dominate Ryder’s sculptural work. The artist first created this wom- an with a rabbit head walking on all fours in 1998/99 in a small format, from which she developed much larger versions that can be found in public spaces today. Sophie Ryder (1963). Crawling (maquette). 1998. Bronze with green patina. 23.5 × 34 × 11 cm. Estimate: CHF 16 000/22 000, PostWar & Contemporary Art, 1 December 2022 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION POSTWAR & CONTEMPORARY ART Silke Stahlschmidt stahlschmidt@kollerauctions.com ONLINE CATALOGUES www.kollerauctions.com Cy Twombly ‘Natural History Part I, Mushrooms’ is from a two-part series Twombly produced in collaboration with the Bastian Gallery in London, based on an ancient text by the Roman author Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia (77–79 CE), which explores the relationship between nature and art. Cy Twombly (1928–2011). Natural History Part I, Mush- rooms. 1974. Portfolio with 10 colour lithographs, collo- type, collage and hand-colouring by the artist. 4/17 AP. 76 × 56 cm each. Estimate: CHF 40 000/60 000 Prints & Multiples, 1 December 2022