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Koller Auctions' officially registered name, "Galerie Koller" hints at this auctionshouse's first beginnings: a gallery. In 1958, attorney Pierre Koller combined his passions for prints depicting horses, clocks and furniture and established a gallery in Zurich's Dafourstrasse. His sister Antoinette Koller, an expert for ceramics, silver and Asian art, joined the business in 1959, broading its scope according to her expertise. A first successful aution was held alreaday one year later. In 1961, the emerging auction house relocated its seat to Rämistrasse, where it stayed for more than three decades - until it proved too small for the expanding business, which had in the meantiome focused on precious antique furniture and luxurious arts and crafts from rococo to Napoleon III.
Hence, Koller Auctions moved to their current premises in Zurich's Hardturmstrasse 102 in 1991. There, two buildings offer spacious 4000qm to be used as showroom, offices and for storage purposes, and allows easy acces to the near highway and Zurich Airport.
In 1990, company founder Pierre Koller's oldest son Cyril Koller joined Koller Auctions, taking over as Managing Director in 1998. The art historian focuses on 19th century paintings, Modern Art and Swiss Art and has since upgraded the paintings to one of the most important business segments of Koller Auctions. His wife Corinne Koller heads up the silver department.
Today, Koller Auctions are Switzerland's leading auction house and employ a workforce of about 55. Legally, it is organized as a private stock company, whose stock is solely held by the Koller family. Whereas Koller Auctions in the Zurich head office conduct four auctions yearly (see our auction calendar), that is, each March, June, September and December, Koller's Geneva branch holds two sales yearly in November und May, specializing on paintings, silver, jewellery, objets d'art, furniture, books, decorative prints and photographs. Since 1974, its division Koller West to be found in Hardturmstrasse 121, offers affordable pieces to newcomers and a young audience. Koller West also enables the Zurich auction house to sell complete estates and to expertly place objects of a broad spectrum in one auction series.
With offices in Munich, Shanghai and Paris and representatives in Austria, Belium, Russia und Australia, Koller Auctions are internationally present. They are also a member of International Auctioneers (IA), an network of eight leading auction houses in various countries with joint appearance, reciprocal marketing, a coordinated auction calendar and magazine of it's own with a run of 80.000.
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