Champion 100 celebrates the collecting philosophy of George Champion. With more than 25 years in the field, Champion has cultivated a reputation for assembling works across a broad range of styles and movements. He explains: “I collect what I like—as long as it’s good design.”
From the very beginning, George was focused on finding the best examples of any given design. His father, who worked in manufacturing and industrial design, instilled in George a robust appreciation for precision, quality and innovation at an early age.
His first foray into the world of collecting was with Shaker furniture. Drawn to the clean, unadorned lines and practicality of Shaker style, it was only natural that George soon transitioned to collecting midcentury modern works, endeavoring to find the most original or iconic representations of a form be it Mies van der Rohe’s white leather Barcelona chairs for Knoll or 50th Anniversary, rosewood LCWs by Charles and Ray Eames.
His passion for design extends well beyond the historical to the contemporary, rare and unusual. Since the 1980s, George has traveled each year to Milan to attend the Salone de Mobile and satellite fairs to view present day design innovations. He fervently follows the production of Cappellini because he believes Giulio Cappellini has been the most receptive to providing opportunities to new, up-and-coming designers. It is from the Cappellini Showroom in New York, "where the company sends its best stuff", that George has acquired many original and exceptional designs including Oki Sato’s (nendo) Tent desk.
Finally, George is also interested in the designers themselves and he has met many of the designers whose works he collects. From asking Ettore Sottsass, Keith Haring, or Philippe Starck to sign works within his collection, to purchasing works from Gaetano Pesce directly, George is wholly invested in the world of design. Design is his passion, his interest and his livelihood.
Champion 100 is the first in a series of auctions in which Wright collaborates with a collector to present a curated selection of 100 works from their personal collection highlighting their design philosophy. George Champion is a collector and dealer located in Woodbury, Connecticut.
Donald Sultan b. 1951
Born in 1951, Donald Sultan is an American contemporary painter from Asheville, North Carolina. He received his BFA from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and moved to New York City after completing his MFA with the School of the Art Institute in Chicago. In the late 1970s, he rose to prominence as part of the New Image movement in New York with his first solo exhibition in 1977.
Sultan describes his body of work as abstract including large-scale compositions of still life imagery deconstructed into basic forms. His subject matter depicts everyday objects such as fruits, flowers, and playing cards set in rich colors against striking black backgrounds. In an innovative technique, he utilizes industrial materials such as tar and oil on tile over Masonite construction in reference to his North Carolina upbringing. Sultan has also created successful work as a draftsman, printmaker, and sculptor.
His work is included in internationally renowned collections including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Tate Gallery in London, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo, and the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. Sultan lives and creates in New York.
Auction Results Donald Sultan
