AXA Art presents The Thrill of Collecting at TEFAF Maastricht

AXA ART PRESENTS
THE THRILL OF COLLECTING
AT TEFAF MAASTRICHT
AXA Art will exhibit a fascinating group of unusual works of art from public and private
collections on its stand at TEFAF Maastricht, the pre-eminent international art and antiques
fair which takes place from Friday 10 to Sunday 19 March 2006. This will be the third year
of AXA Art’s sponsorship of the fair.
All the items to be exhibited have been loaned by clients of AXA Art, the world’s leading fine
art insurance company with offices in ten countries. Each loan, which might comprise
several works, comes from one of these countries and the exhibition will demonstrate the
power that collecting can hold over those that come into its thrall. Each of the collectors
describes on a wall panel the genesis of the passion, and in some cases life-long fascination,
for the objects and works of art they have acquired.
Benelux: on view will be a selection of historic maps of Africa dating from the 17 th to 19 th
centuries together with African instruments and items from the Henry Morton Stanley
collection, all loaned by the Royal Museum of Central Africa in Tervuren, Belgium. The
Museum was founded in 1897 and houses truly remarkable collections including the almost
complete archives of Stanley, the well-known explorer of Africa who famously ‘found’ David
Livingstone on Lake Tanganyika in 1871, greeting him with the words “Dr Livingstone, I
presume?”
France: three objects have been loaned from the Lebovici Collection formed by Yvon
Poullain. Always a collector, the industrialist Poullain met the designer Yonel Lebovici (1937-
1998) in 1975. They became friends and from then on Poullain devoted his collecting
entirely to works by Lebovici, who was obsessed with perpetual motion, and installed them
in a building in Paris designed by Robert Mallet-Stevens. On view at Maastricht will be Forks
and Spoons Table, fishing floats on a base and Concorde lamp.
Germany: a group of lighters from the collection of over 4,000 items formed over 15 years
by Volker Putz of Hamburg who says: “Collecting has always been one of my passions. As a
boy I collected stamps, model cars and beer mats.” He says of the lighters: “Each piece has its
own story to tell”. They range from 2,000-year-old fire steels to electroplated and electronic
ignition devices and include phosphorus igniters and earlier matches as well as gold Cartier
and Dunhill lighters, some Art Deco watch lighters, others decorated with precious stones
and examples that previously belonged to Marlene Dietrich and King Farouk.
Hong Kong: a Chinese Portrait of a Lady in Red, circa 1790, oil and gold leaf on canvas,
loaned by Anthony J. Hardy, Partner in Wallem Group, Hong Kong, and Chairman of the
Hong Kong Maritime Museum. His extensive collection of Chinese works of art focuses
primarily on archaic bronzes, early ceramics and China Trade paintings. Lady in Red is one of
his favourite works which he describes as “an absolutely beautiful painting, the work of a
Chinese master … combining 18 th century European portraiture with the subtlety of the
ancient Chinese painting tradition”.

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Italy: a replica of the famous Noccolò Amati ‘King Louis XIV’ violin, now in the Smithsonian
Institution in Washington DC, loaned and made in 2005 by Vitttorio Villa whose love of
music and violins have always been part of his life. He says: “When I listen to the sound of
my violins I feel like Pygmalion, the sculptor whose statue comes to life. I’ve been a
professional violin maker for 16 years, but every time I see a violin growing in my hands, I’m
still deeply involved”.
Norway: a Russian icon, circa 1800, loaned by Erling Kagge, a collector of both Russian icons
and contemporary art. Kagge’s other passion in life has been polar exploration and during
the 1990s he became the first person ever to conquer the North and South poles and Mount
Everest. When he became a publisher at the end of the 1990s he was able to indulge his
interest in collecting art. He says: “I am not religious, but the power of a well-painted icon
seems to transcend faith”.
Spain: a collection of Roman rings loaned by Alfonso Presa who began collecting around
1980. He says: “Since I was small I was interested in the ‘Roman customs and manners’ and
used to play at Roman Legions instead of Cowboys and Indians. I like to collect rings
because a ring is a personal object; its original owner must have bought it because he was
also attracted to its beauty. I often wonder who its owner was”.
Switzerland: a group of prints from the collection of more than 10,000 prints, paintings and
books relating to the Swiss town Bad Ragaz and its surroundings, formed over 30 years by
the entrepreneur and passionate collector Otto Schneider. He says: “Collecting is part of the
human condition, therefore everyone collects in a different way. The true collector can in
fact be considered an addict”.
United Kingdom: a model of LMS Steam Locomotive The Royal Scot from the collection
formed by insurance broker Barry Owen who says: “I collect anything connected with
Liverpool. This model … epitomizes my love of my home city and the wonderful steam age.
Anything my wife does not want at home, or that we have not got room for, is displayed in
the office. My staff really enjoy being surrounded by objects linked to Liverpool … we all
learn so much.”
USA: two folk art pictures, a silhouette by the ‘Red Book Artist’, circa 1830, and Young Lady
in Blue Dress by an anonymous artist, circa 1810-15, from the collection of American folk art
formed by Ronald Merican. According to Merican: “I don’t recall the specific object which
first drew my attention … but I do remember the rush of adrenalin … that response to the
initial impact of the aesthetics of American folk art has compelled me to surround myself with
wonderful and enduring objects for the last 34 years”.
AXA Art’s exhibition will show just the tip of an iceberg as far as The Thrill of Collecting is
concerned but should whet the appetite of visitors to TEFAF Maastricht, the pre-eminent
international art and antiques fair. AXA Art’s more sombre introductory stand featuring an
early 19 th century American card table that was badly damaged by hurricane Katrina will
alert collectors to the need to protect their works of art. (see separate press release)
____________________
For further information, please contact:
Sue Bond Public Relations
Hollow Lane Farmhouse, Hollow Lane, Thurston, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP31 3RQ, UK
Tel. +44 (0)1359 271085 Fax. +44 (0)1359 271491
E-mail: info@suebond.co.uk Website: www.suebond.co.uk
30/1/2006