Christian Zätterström was a unique collector. He had integrity like few other art buyers, was sure of his taste and had a self-confidence that made any attempts at persuasion unnecessary. Bukowskis now has the honor to sell a part of his collection during Contemporary Art & Design on October 25th.
Zätterström put his heart and soul into his professional life in law, where he worked successfully for more than 30 years, but he also had several other interests, immersing himself with great enthusiasm in art as well as music and sport. As a young man he was a professional handball player and later followed the Liverpool football team.
Zätterström was rarely seen at openings and art events, instead cultivating strong relationships with a select few gallery owners and artists. These relationships are reflected in the art collection, which mainly includes works by Swedish artists. Zätterström did not intend to sell his works but bought them because he had an indomitable faith in art and its place in society.
Jan Stene, curator of Gävle Art Centre and former gallery owner, was one of those who knew Christian Zätterström;
"In an art scene with a lot of glamour and surface, Z, as we called him, was a person with a genuine interest in culture, a humanist. Art was real, not a speculation."
Zätterström's collection spans several different genres, expressions and materials; everything from Tova Mozard's photography to Torsten Andersson's paintings and Remy Zaugg's enamel works. Much of the art hung in the home in Malmö and thus became part of the family's everyday life. Several works were, to the delight of his colleagues, placed in the law office where he was a partner. Bukowskis has now been entrusted to sell about forty works from the Christian Zätterström Collection, but a large part of the collection is managed by his sons.