Christie’s, The Masterpieces Exhibition

A unique exhibition of more than one hundred works from antiquities to contemporary art. This show placed Christie’s at the center of the European art market and on the cover of The Art Newspaper. In five days, the exhibition attracted over 4,500 visitors and led to the sale of over £2 million in subsequent auctions.

A periodic exhibition taking place during summer in London, Masterpieces at Christie’s looks to present the best works of art gathered by this auction house every year. Bringing together artworks from across the globe, which represent the most varied subjects, art forms and artistic periods, this annual exhibition is presented to the public through a specific storyline each year. After more than 7 iterations, this show focused on the synergy born from the coexistence of past and present. A curatorial view, woven through the dialogue of 4 young curators, spoke of the thrive and drive to move forward, while recognizing the values and contributions of the past. Past Perfect / Future Present, became the ludic frame through which the interaction of art periods and art forms built meaning. Conveying the vitality of a very contemporary atmosphere for one of the most solemnly presented exhibitions in the year, was the creative challenge presented to us. The identity designed portrayed the tension of two diverging arrows pointing forward and backwards; towards the future and towards the past, balanced each other while becoming a vibrant square, a container for the name of the exhibition. Fluorescent colors, sans serif typefaces joined to unusual materials, structures and spatial compositions, were subsequently introduced, with the intention of disrupting the ways in which art and curatorial concepts had traditionally been presented at Christie’s. In a complex yet successful marriage of contemporaneity and sobriety, color and material choices were echoed in the design of editorial, printed and digital elements. The auction house façade and galleries in Westminster, wrapped in fluorescent green and dark blue, were at the center of the European art market and on the cover of The Art Newspaper for this period. In five days, the exhibition attracted over 4,500 visitors and led to the sale of over £2 million in subsequent auctions.