The previous auction record in Norway was set by another Kittelsen picture, “Andersnatten”, which went for NOK 14 million in 2020.
Kittelsen’s iconic “Kvitebjørn” went under the hammer in Gamle Logen in Oslo. The auction house Grev Wedel’s plass Auksjoner auctioned the picture.
– Perhaps the most Norwegian and, for many, the most well-known motif in our entire art history, said auctioneer Hans Richard Elgheim just before he started what turned out to be a dramatic round of bidding.
The bid started at NOK 15 million and from there the sum bounced back and forth between one and the other bidder. Some sat in the hall, while others expressed their interest by telephone.
The National Museum wants the picture
In the end, it was an anonymous buyer who ran away as the winner of the bidding round – with a price tag of NOK 36 million.
– It is a phenomenal record, Elgheim concluded when the hammer had hit the table for the third and last time.
With the costs of 25 per cent in addition, the buyer has to fork out a total of NOK 45 million.
The participants are anonymous, and it is not necessarily made public who bought the picture.
There is also mystery surrounding the picture’s ownership history. Little is publicly known about its ownership history as it has been in private ownership, most recently with shipping heir Petter Olsen.
The National Museum has stated that they want the picture, but that they cannot afford it. They still hope that the buyer will donate or lend the picture to the museum so that it becomes available to the public.
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– Historic event
“Kvitebjørn King Valemon” is one of Kittelsen’s best-known works. He made it in 1912, just two years before he died, aged 56.
The motif is from the Asbjørnsen and Moe fairy tale about King Valemon, who was turned into a bear by a witch after refusing to marry her.
– It is to be considered a historic event. And I doubt whether “Kvitebjørn” will ever be seen again on the market, Elgheim told NTB ahead of the auction.
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