Juan Montoya Auction

Internationally famous Interior Designer Juan Montoya, whose work can presently be viewed at the Kips Bay Showhouse in New York City, is selling a number of pieces this week at Rago Arts and Auction Center in Lambertville, NJ. Some of the pieces are classic 20th century modern and others of his own unique design.

From Auction Central News Staff
Wednesday, 18 March 2009 13:17



LAMBERTVILLE, N.J. - Juan Montoya, the internationally acclaimed interior designer recognized for his bold modernist interiors, will sell select property from his modern furniture and decorative art collections at Rago Arts & Auction Center on April 25-26. Montoya's collection is part of Sollo Rago's two-day modern sale.

"We are thrilled that Juan Montoya has selected Rago as the auction house to sell his collection," said John Sollo, of Sollo Rago Modern. "The objects in this sale attest to his taste for interesting, important furniture and decorative arts and to Juan's exceptional eye for the best material, often mixed in unexpected ways."

Montoya has been a loyal patron of Rago for many years. "I've purchased major pieces of 20th century design from them," he said. "They have great depth knowledge in their fields of expertise and are very easy to work with."

According to Montoya, the sale is a gathering of furniture and decorative objects that he has collected over the past 15 years. It will consist of approximately 85 lots. Among the highlights:



* A parchment rosewood cabinet with gilt details by Osvaldo Borsani, one of Italy's most acclaimed modern furniture designers.



* A mahogany and leather upholstered armchair characterized by great proportions and angles, created by Dominique, one of the premier French Art Deco furniture makers.



* A glass countertop radiator by René-André Coulon, with a fascinating functional design. A similar example is in the collection of the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York.



* An armchair, in folded sheet steel with its original upholstery, designed by René Prou in 1931 for Labormetal. Prou, one of the great designers of the Art Deco period, is renowned for his work on cruise ships, trains, apartment buildings and luxury hotels.



* A rare chair by the American architect Paul Rudolph in acrylic and chrome, the floating angles of the chair reflecting the same ideas as his modern architecture.



René Herbst designed this single-pedestal desk with integrated bookcase and armchair. The set is expected to sell for $15,000-$25,000. Photo courtesy Rago Arts & Auction Center.

The sale will also feature many custom pieces designed by Juan Montoya himself for show houses such as Kips Bay in New York and Villa Maria and Southampton, Long Island, as well as some of his experimental prototypes. The full catalogue can be seen here.