Rare Piero Manzoni Achrome to Be Auctioned in Copenhagen

A rare 1961 Achrome by Piero Manzoni will be auctioned at Bruun Rasmussen in Copenhagen on December 5, with an estimate of €200,000–270,000. The work, made of natural fiber on a fabric-covered wooden board (27 x 22 cm), was created during Manzoni's stays in Denmark between 1960 and 1961, where he worked at the shirt factory of patron Aage Damgaard in Herning. There, he produced the Linea lunga 7.200 meters and a series of 'hairy' Achromes using natural and synthetic fibers. The piece has been exhibited in Paris (Galerie 12 Druot, from September 21), London (Shapero Modern, November 5–8), and Copenhagen (Rasmussen, November 27). It previously belonged to an assistant of the Copenhagen gallery and was shown to Freddy Battino of Galleria Blu in Milan in 1989, who included it in the artist's catalogue raisonné. Manzoni, born in Soncino in 1933 and died in Milan in 1963 at age 29, was a key figure in the Italian avant-garde, associated with Lucio Fontana, Yves Klein, Vincenzo Agnetti, and Enrico Castellani. With Castellani, he founded the magazine Azimuth and the Galleria Azimut in Milan in 1959. His most famous works include Merda d'artista (1961) and the Achrome series (1957–1963).