LONDON.- Today at Sotheby’s in London, Finnish artists Helene Schjerfbeck and Albert Edelfelt commanded strong prices when two rare and important works came under the hammer in an auction of 19th Century European Paintings.

Schjerfbeck’s The Red-Haired Girl II was pursued by three determined bidders, driving the final sale price to £1,205,000 (€1,574,934), more than double its pre-sale low estimate (£500,000-700,000 / €635,000-890,000). The painting was acquired by the Gösta Serlachius Fine Arts Foundation in Finland – one of the finest collections in the Nordic region, embracing Finnish art from the Golden Age through to the 20th century, alongside works by other European masters from the 15th to the 19th centuries. This was preceded by La laitière, a long-lost masterpiece by Edelfelt, which sold to the European trade for £353,000 (€461,371), against an estimate of £300,000-500,000 (€380,000-635,000).

From a Scandinavian private collection and available on the open market for the first time ever, The Red-Haired Girl II by Helene Schjerfbeck ignited an intense bidding war between several institutions. An exquisite synthesis of linear elegance, painterly texture and subtle intimacy, the work represents the artist at the peak of her powers. The importance of The Red-Haired Girl II in the Schjerfbeck canon was clearly recognised when the painting was selected as the cover image for the ground-breaking retrospective of the artist’s work at the Helsinki Ateneum in 1992. In this work, painted in 1915, Schjerfbeck distills with a breath-taking economy of means the outer beauty and inner purity of the sitter, further perfecting what the artist captured so sublimely in The Red-Haired Girl I.

Unseen by the public since it was exhibited in Helsinki in 1892, La laitière is one of the most important works by Albert Edelfelt to have been rediscovered in recent times. Recorded by Bertel Hintze in his Edelfelt monograph of 1944, the painting was until now known only from a black-and-white photograph taken in 1892. It was likely sold directly to a French collector soon after it was completed in 1889, at a time when Edelfelt was spending time between Paris and Finland, and it may have remained in France for the last century. An atmospheric evocation of archipelago life in Haikko, where the artist kept a summer house, La laitière came to the market from a French private collection, having remained in the same family for over 75 years.

Peder Isacson, Head of Sotheby’s Scandinavia, said: “We are thrilled to have been able to offer once again in London seminal works by Scandinavian and Nordic artists. The sale of The Red-Haired Girl II by Helene Schjerfeck follows our success last December with the artist’s Girl with Blonde Hair and Lemons in a Bowl. Each time we establish these benchmark prices, what we see at work is the transforming power of the international auction platform. In their pursuit of quality, new and seasoned collectors from all around the world are willing to compete for such exceptional works.”

Claude Piening, Head of Department, 19th Century European Paintings, Sotheby’s London, said: “The astounding price achieved for Schjerfbeck’s profoundly moving and radically modern image of female beauty is a fitting testament to the artist’s enduring appeal. This painting resonates with public appreciation of her work. I am delighted The Red-Haired Girl II went to a Finnish fine arts foundation, where it will be accessible for future generations to enjoy. Today’s sale, together with the strong price for one of the most memorable works of Edelfelt’s career, marks yet another exciting moment for Finnish art on the international stage.”

Sotheby’s holds the highest price for any work sold at auction by a Finnish artist (Tanssiaiskengät; Balskorna (Dancing Shoes) by Helene Schjerfbeck sold in London in May 2008 for £3,044,500) and for any work sold at auction by a Danish artist (Interior, Strandgade 30 by Vilhelm Hammershøi sold in London in May 2015 for £2,045,000).

At Sotheby’s London in December 2015, Girl with Blonde Hair, painted in 1916, sold to a European institution for £869,000 / €1,193,219 (est. £500,000-700,000 / €700,000-975,000). Lemons in a Wooden Bowl was acquired by The Reitz Foundation in Finland for £533,000 / €731,859 (est. £300,000-500,000 / €418,000-700,000).