Bonhams charity auction of Ornellaia sees stellar prices for one-off bottles
Bonhams celebrates ‘exceptional’ results for Ornellaia Vendemmia d’Artista charity auction, which outperformed pre-sale estimates, showing continued demand for one-off pieces.
The 18th Ornellaia Vendemmia d’Artista charity auction, which concluded online last week, realized a total of €128,216, with all 14 lots selling, raising valuable funds for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.
The annual auction, which started in 2009, sees a contemporary artist interpret the character of a vintage, which is sold to benefit conservation and restoration programs at the museum. The proceeds from this year are associated with an upcoming exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, Guggenheim Pop: 1960 to Now, which will be on view from this June until January 2027.
This year saw the Ornellaia 2023 La Vitalità through the eyes of Serbian conceptual and performance artist Marina Abramović, once dubbed “the most dangerous women in art”.
Abramović’s artistic contribution offered a powerful reflection on vitality and creative energy, according to group president Lamberto Frescobaldi, “beautifully conveying the vitality and elegance of our wine through a captivating and engaging artistic interpretation.” Her work was based on the word ‘La Vitalità‘ chosen to describe the 2023 harvest and a specific reading of what occurred in Ornellaia’s vineyards that year.
Abramović said that she started the process drawing the raw material: the grape, surrounding an image of her face with the clusters “and, suddenly, the vivid green of the leaves and the deep black of the berries began to vibrate. A vital force, energy-petals blooming from the mind,” she said.
Multi-formats
The sale saw a range of different formats of the Ornellaia’s 2023 vintage, including unique signed bottles, imperials and other large-format collections, as well as exclusive winery experiences.
The top-performing lot was a unique 9L Salmanazar one-off bottle created and signed by Abramović which included a red wax cone-shaped candle on top of the bottle, inspired by her previous artworks, Energy Hat, along with a 45-rpm vinyl record by Nino Rota, with instructions on the label to “Slowly drink wine with eyes closed and listen to the music.”
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The lot, which also included a rare vineyard dinner and overnight stay for six guests, saw competitive bidding and achieved €23,560, far surpassing the pre-sale estimate of €14,000 – 18,000. There were also ten Imperials available, offered with private visits of the estate or dinner with 6 guests with Imperial No.5/10 and Imperial No.6/10 matching set with dinner hosted by Marina Abramović and a winemaker dinner for six guests achieving €16,120. The Imperial No.10/10 signed by Marina Abramović which included a private visit for two guests sold for €9,920. Finally, a wooden collection case containing twelve bottles of Ornellaia 750ml, including the full vertical of twelve Vendemmia d’Artista 750ml labels produced from 2012 to 2023 realised €13,640 against an estimate of €6,000 to 9,000.
Frescobaldi, president of the group said the company was extremely proud of the result of this auction, which contribute to preserving important artistic heritage and ensuring its accessibility for future generations.
“We are pleased that the outcome of this edition can once again support the activities of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, strengthening a collaboration based on the shared values of conservation and accessibility of art.”
Vintage conditions
Marco Balsimelli, technical director at Ornellaia, said the 2013 vintage had been born out of a mild winter, which encouraged early vegetative growth, followed by a spring marked by abundant rainfall. This helped to replenish water reserves ahead of the summer but required extra work in the vineyard to control growth and prevent potential diseases, he said.
This was followed by a hot summer, although there were no extreme peaks in temperature.
“There was no water stress in the vineyards, which reached maturity gradually and with optimal concentration. Late August rainfall and cool September nights favoured the development of aromatic complexity and preserved good acidity in the grapes, ensuring a perfect balance between expressiveness and elegance, which is the signature of Ornellaia,” Balsimelli said.
Last year’s edition raised US$106,875.
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