February 13, 2018

Text: Ryan Waddoups

JF Chen, Celebrated Design Collector, Toasts 40 Years With Christie’s Auction

On February 13, Christie’s will auction over 300 lots from design collector JF Chen’s Los Angeles emporium. Pictured here, Ubald Klug settees sit beneath an After Alexander Calder tapestry; in the foreground, a lounge chair and ottoman by Gösta Berg and Stenevik Eriksson. Image courtesy of Christie’s. 

JF Chen’s Los Angeles antiques emporium, a design community mainstay that boasts a refined and eclectic mix of furniture, lighting, and decorative objects, is about to celebrate its 40th anniversary. To kick things off, Christie’s New York is hosting “JF Chen Collection,” a retrospective auction dedicated to the collector, whose blue-chip clientele includes Rick Owens, The Row, and Alexander Wang. The 300+ lots, 60 of which are online-exclusives, highlight a cross-section of Asian art and contemporary design, drawing on Chen’s formative years spent in Hong Kong and Los Angeles. Christie’s ground-level galleries are showcasing the items up for grabs, a hybrid of collectibles from Ettore Sottsass, Charlotte Perriand, and Finn Juhl to contemporary designers such as Material Lust and Jordan Mozer.

“JF Chen Collection” occurs on February 13; online bidding is live from February 7-14. Christie’s New York is located at 20 Rockefeller Plaza. Browse the lot here.

Various seating from JF Chen’s collection. Image courtesy of Christie’s. 
Hans Wegner’s daybed faces Michael Wilson’s floor lamp. Image courtesy of Christie’s.
Six Finn Juhl side chairs surround a Hans Wegner table; the chair and ottoman are also by Wegner. Image courtesy of Christie’s.
Craig McDean’s Sumo photographs backdrop Francesco Buzzi Ceriani’s floor lamp and Poul Kjærholm’s chaise. Image courtesy of Christie’s.
Kaare Klint’s sofa faces a desk by Paul T. Frankl. Image courtesy of Christie’s.

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