Flora & Fauna

The forms and stories of the natural world have inspired artists and designers since beginning of time. In Flora & Fauna, Auktionshuset Kolonn brings together art, decorative arts, and design centered on flowers, foliage, and animals. Here, diverse eras and artistic expressions converge, united by nature as a shared source of inspiration.

Among the animal-themed pieces in the auction, we encounter Lisa Larson’s "Lion" (maxi-size) from the Africa series, her beloved "Kangaroo", and Carl Milles’s "Playing Bear Cub"—three sculptures with distinct expressions, yet all capturing the true character of the animals.

Nature takes on a more imaginative form in Ernst Billgren’s Eget landskap ("Own Landscape"), a print on Plexiglas featuring a stag in period-style attire standing before a dreamlike landscape. Birger Kaipiainen’s pedestal dish for Arabia—crafted in stoneware with a blue-violet luster glaze—brings together a butterfly, a flower, and a pocket watch.

Floral and foliate motifs recur in everything from an antique silver brooch set with rose-cut diamonds to the carved and painted ornamentation of the furniture. The selection of older pieces also includes a Gustavian-style mirror by Anders Carlsson, a mirror maker active between 1772 and 1801; the mirror is signed and hallmarked, featuring gilded, carved decoration executed partly in papier-mâché.

An extensive Meissen dinner service in the classic "Onion Pattern" sits alongside floor sculptures shaped like dogs and works by creators such as Oiva Toikka, Firma Svenskt Tenn, and David Andersen.