A rarely seen abstract work by Swedish artist Hilma af Klint is set to appear at auction in Stockholm. Titled Ser III No. 5 and dated 1920, the painting will be offered by auction house Bukowskis on November 19, with an estimate of $600,000 to $800,000. Reaching the lower estimate would establish a new auction record for the artist.
The work comes from a period of intense creativity: af Klint produced 85 paintings over three months in 1920. The current owner, whose identity has not been disclosed, has held it since 1995. Bukowskis says only two of the artist's paintings have previously sold at auction, both more than 30 years ago.
A growing place in modern art
Once less widely recognized, af Klint is now regarded as a major figure in 20th-century art. Her geometric forms, spirals and floral motifs reflected her spiritual interests, and her work has increasingly featured in museum exhibitions. A 2018 retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum in New York brought renewed attention to her role in the history of abstraction.
Af Klint's works seldom enter the commercial market. Her foundation has said the artist did not want her art commercialized, and only a small number of works were made available for sale in the early 1990s. The painting's appearance at auction is therefore an unusual opportunity to encounter a work that has largely remained outside public sales.
As interest in af Klint's work continues to expand, this sale may further shape how audiences and collectors engage with early abstraction.
