Thomas Olbricht sells his art collection at Van Ham Auctions

German physician and collector Thomas Olbricht is auctioning over 500 works from his collection, spanning from the early 16th century to contemporary art. The sale, titled 'From a Universal Collector – The Olbricht Collection', will be held by Van Ham Auctions on September 26. It includes pieces by Thomas Schütte, Cindy Sherman, Marlene Dumas, Gerhard Richter, George Condo, and emerging Chinese and South American artists. Highlights include Condo's 'Screaming Couple' (2005, estimate €300,000–500,000) and an early Sherman photograph (estimate €120,000). The auction follows the closure of Olbricht's private museum, me Collectors Room Berlin, in May after a decade of operation. The space will be taken over by the Peter Janssen Collection, focusing on Samurai aesthetics. Olbricht's foundation will continue cultural education projects, relocating from Berlin to Essen, his and his wife Claudia's hometown. Olbricht, who began collecting in the 1980s under the influence of his uncle Karl Ströher, has appeared 12 times on ARTnews' Top 200 Collectors. His collection also includes a Wunderkammer of over 300 Baroque and Renaissance curiosities, such as taxidermy birds and a unicorn horn, previously displayed at the museum.