Ben VAUTIER, known as BEN (1935–2024) - Lot 53

The Helenbeck Sisters' Private Collection

Public auction on Thursday, September 24, at 2:00 p.m., in person and via Drouot Live & Interenchères Live

Public viewing on Wednesday, September 23, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., or starting September 9, by appointment at 04 97 13 82 94

Private sales may be available for certain lots prior to the auction.

Fees: 25% including tax; lots marked with an asterisk are subject to a VAT adjustment (rounded up to 28% including tax) + the auction platform’s live bidding fee of 1.5% excluding tax (1.8% including tax).

We do not ship items by mail. Pickup by appointment or via the carrier of your choice.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Well-known in the Nice art scene from the late 1990s until the gallery’s closure during the COVID-19 pandemic, the twins Chantal and Brigitte Argieme, known as Helenbeck, also operated a gallery in Paris. Chantal passed away in November 2024; it is her sister Brigitte who is organizing the sale of their collection.

They entered the art world at a very early age, as Brigitte married a furniture restorer who went on to become a collaborator of the famous antique dealer Jean Gismondi. Gismondi fell in love with Brigitte’s twin sister, Chantal, and remained with her for 35 years.

The sisters’ career took off thanks to their fateful encounter with César, who was living with the quartet at the Bastide du Roy, which Gismondi had just purchased from the Prince of Polignac.

On César’s advice, the sisters launched a groundbreaking concept in the late 1990s: they created a haute couture line and had artists personalize dresses and handbags. The artists worked directly on these one-of-a-kind pieces, which Ben would call “living paintings.” Fashion shows followed one after another, in Monaco and throughout the French Riviera. The dresses sold for an average of 40,000 euros each. They extended this success to furniture—ranging from 18th-century pieces to 1970s furniture—on which the artists painted the upholstery in their own style. The sisters collaborate with Ben, Raba, Folon, Moya, Arman, Nall, Gilli, Hélène Delprat, Louis Cane, Larry Rivers…

The sisters decided to exhibit street art in New York, where it had never before been shown officially and legally in a gallery. In 2009, at Splashlight Studios, they exhibited works by artists such as Blade, Crash, Daze, and JonOne (whom Brigitte discovered in Avignon and brought out of obscurity). The event took place simultaneously in New York, Paris, and Nice and was a huge success.

The sisters describe themselves as talent scouts and take a chance on showcasing unknown artists.