Deutsche Bank to invests significant portion of art auction proceeds in contemporary art

Deutsche Bank to invests significant portion of art auction proceeds in contemporary art

Around 200 works of art that are not part of the collection’s main focus are being sold / The bank is investing a significant portion of the proceeds in contemporary art

(PRESS RELEASE) FRANKFURT, 8-Oct-2020 — /EuropaWire/ — Deutsche Bank announces plans to sell around 200 works from its art holdings, encompassing more than 55,000 works in total. Art works that will be sold includes paintings, sculptures, drawings, and prints from the early classical modernist period of the early 20th century. Only objects that do not belong to the collection’s main focus—works on paper and photographs—will be sold. Paintings and sculptures from the postwar modernist period from 1945 to the 1970s will also be offered for sale. Many of these works were acquired before today’s collecting concept was defined in 1980.

Over the next three years, the works will be auctioned internationally through Christie’s in London and Paris and Ketterer Kunst in Munich. The first works will go under the hammer at a Christie’s auction in Paris on October 22, 2020. Mainly works of postwar modernism will follow at Ketterer in Munich on December 11 and 12, 2020. For this and subsequent auctions, total sales in the low double-digit million range are expected.

“Deutsche Bank is using a significant portion of the auction proceeds to purchase works by up-and-coming artistic talents,” says Friedhelm Hütte, head of the art activities of the Art, Culture & Sports department. “This is linked to our continued commitment to artists and galleries, which is particularly important at the moment. All in all, we want to focus our program even more strongly and visibly on contemporary art.”

An essential part of the bank’s involvement in art is its “Artist of the Year” program, which is also connected with acquisitions, as well as exhibitions of works from the Deutsche Bank Collection. Also, selected paintings and sculptures have been made available to several museums – in particular the Städel Museum in Frankfurt – as long-term loans. Such cooperative endeavors with museums are also to be continued within the framework of the current focus.

For further information please contact:

Deutsche Bank AG
Media Relations

Dr. Klaus Winker
Tel: +49 69 910 32249
Email: klaus.winker@db.com

About Deutsche Bank

Deutsche Bank provides retail and private banking, corporate and transaction banking, lending, asset and wealth management products and services as well as focused investment banking to private individuals, small and medium-sized companies, corporations, governments and institutional investors. Deutsche Bank is the leading bank in Germany with strong European roots and a global network.

Useful Links

ArtWorks – The Deutsche Bank global art program

About Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank provides retail and private banking, corporate and transaction banking, lending, asset and wealth management products and services as well as focused investment banking to private individuals, small and medium-sized companies, corporations, governments and institutional investors. Deutsche Bank is the leading bank in Germany with strong European roots and a global network.

SOURCE: Deutsche Bank AG