BMW Art Guide by Independent Collectors

Gudrun & Bernd Wurlitzer

Wurlitzer Pied A Terre Collection – Berlin, Germany

Stephanie Stein, "Schon Bald", 2015. Photo: Wurlitzer Collection
Stephanie Stein, "Schon Bald", 2015. Photo: Wurlitzer Collection

How important is having the title of being a “collector” to you?

BW: That’s not important at all for me, you never feel of yourself like a collector. When our friends and visitors told us that “you have a fantastic collection”, then we were collectors.
GW: I’m an architect who collects. “Collector” sound a bit overdone.

Does your collection follow a specific theme or particular artists?

BW: Not in the beginning, but in the last ten years we have been following artists like Wolfgang Tillmans, Isa Genzken, Alicja Kwade, Gregor Hildebrandt and some others. But there is no theme, just always room for new artists. When curating an exhibition like “Mind the Gap” in our new project room the works get a theme and a red line combining them.

Do you have a personal relationship with the artists you collect?

BW: With some of them we have very good friendships that began in the 1980s in Cologne, Düsseldorf and New York. In the last decade we’ve also made new friends here in Berlin and in London.
GW: Most of the friendships existed before we were collecting at all. We are working within the creative scene and so it is only natural that you have artist friends.

Michail Pirgelis, "Handlines II", 2017; Okka-Esther Hungerbühler, "Springbrunnen 4". Photo: Wurlitzer Collection
Michail Pirgelis, "Handlines II", 2017; Okka-Esther Hungerbühler, "Springbrunnen 4". Photo: Wurlitzer Collection

Is there an artwork that you love but can’t live with due to size, medium, or value?

BW: My wife is an architect and very inventive when it comes to spaces.
GW: It’s a luxury to live with valuable art around you, and an everyday joy! But as it is contemporary art, it’s never over the top.

In your opinion, what mistakes do young collectors make? And what mistakes did you make when first starting on your collecting journey?

BW: To expect that it’s easy to judge what is great art. It comes little by little and can take years. In our case, we were very lucky because our early artist friends were all top artists. We have somehow always lived within contemporary art history. All of these friends have become successful and our collection represents some of these artists.
GW: My husband was director of an art gallery in Duesseldorf and showing all the photo work by artists like Fischli & Weiss, Martin Kippenberger, Günther Förg, Laurie Simmons, Steven Meisel, Georg Herold, Lyn Davis, Walter Dahn. So in addition to the friendships with artists this was a good course about great art too. Our mistake when starting? Not having purchased enough. This was due to the fact that the artworks from our artist friends were already too expensive for us in those early times of our own careers.

What has the reaction been like from visitors of your collection since making it publicly accessible? Does this reaction impact you and what you collect?

GW: It depends if the visitors are art professionals or art lovers. With some we have interesting dialogues and there is always a great interest on how we find and choose the artworks. Some visitors wonder how we can live with so much art around us.
BW: The impact of what we collect comes from decades of learning and consists of countless mosaic pieces of our lives within the art world. We collect abstract and also narrative art; the later is often more accepted by visitors. But never would this lead us to gravitate more in that direction.

(l–r) Anna Vogel, "Two Pigment Prints, 2014"; Jürgen Drescher, "Sprechblase", 2011
(l–r) Anna Vogel, "Two Pigment Prints, 2014"; Jürgen Drescher, "Sprechblase", 2011

Where do you find out about artists that you are interested in purchasing?

BW: As we know so many artists and gallerists, we get good hints. Both my wife and I like checking the Internet for getting more information on artists. And of course studio visits are a big part of learning more.
GW: With our Internet project Artitious we are sharing some of our privileges by providing information about artists, such as views of the studios and artworks.

Which publicly accessible private collection would you recommend visiting?

BW: The Feuerle Collection is extraordinary, Haubrokprojects is very special and the Ivo Wessel Collection is intellectual and literary
GW: The me Collectors Room is also always a journey into something exciting.

All images courtesy the Wurlitzer Pied A Terre Collection, Berlin

More Information on Wurlitzer Pied A Terre Collection

Collectors (77)

Narda van 't Veer

The Narda van 't Veer Collection – Monnickendam, Netherlands

Rashid Al Khalifa

RAK ART FOUNDATION – Riffa, Bahrain

Olivier Chow

The Olivier Chow Collection – Lausanne, Switzerland

Valeria Napoleone

Valeria and Gregorio Napoleone Collection – London, UK

Matteo Novarese

SOF:ART – Bologna, Italy

Martin Steppacher

Gallery Durchgang – Basel, Switzerland

Carmelo Graci

Graci Collection – Mantova, Italy

Dr. William Lim

Living Collection – Hong Kong

NICOLA ERNI

Nicola Erni Collection – Steinhausen, Switzerland

Lukas Jakob

Jakob Collection – Gundelfingen, Germany

Claus Busch Risvig

Bech Risvig Collection – Silkeborg, Denmark

Joseph Awuah-Darko

The Terra Collection Of African Contemporary Art – Accra, Ghana | London, UK

INGRID AND THOMAS JOCHHEIM

Ingrid and Thomas Jochheim Collection – Berlin, Germany

Michał Borowik

Michał Borowik Collection – Warsaw, Poland

Bernardo Paz

Instituto Inhotim – Centro de Arte Contemporânea e Jardim Botânico – Brumadinho, Brazil

Tony Salamé

Aïshti Foundation – Beirut, Lebanon

Nadia & Rajeeb Samdani

Samdani Art Foundation (SAF), Dhaka, Bangladesh

Lord David Cholmondeley

Houghton Hall – King's Lynn, Great Britain

Galila Barzilaï-Hollander

Galila's P.O.C., Brussels, Belgium

Martin Margulies

The Margulies Collection at the Warehouse – Miami, United States of America

Christine and Andrew Hall

Hall Art Foundation - Reading, USA & Derneburg, Germany

Qiao Zhibing

TANK Shanghai and Qiao Space - Shanghai, China

Christen Sveaas

Kistefos Museet, Jevnaker, Norway

Noemi Givon

Givon Art Forum – Tel Aviv, Israel

Michael Buxton

Buxton Contemporary - Melbourne, Australia

Seth Stolbun

The Stolbun Collection – Houston, USA

Jochen Zeitz

Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MOCAA) - Cape Town, Africa

Dominique & Sylvain Levy

DSLCollection – Paris, France

Andrea von Goetz

Sammlung Blankenburg – Hamburg, Germany

Gordon Elliott

The Elliott Eyes Collection - Sydney, Australia

The Vague Space

Christian Kaspar Schwarm on the first solo presentation of his collection at the Weserburg Bremen

Anita Zabludowicz

Zabludowicz Collection – London, United Kingdom

Anastasios A. Gkekas

The Office Collection - Nicosia, Cyprus

Rik Reinking

WAI - Woods Art Institute, Wentorf bei Hamburg, Germany

Maria Didrichsen

Didrichsen Art Museum – Helsinki, Finland

João Carlos de Figueiredo Ferraz

Instituto Figueiredo Ferraz (IFF) - São Paulo, Brazil

Julia Stoschek

Julia Stoschek Collection – Dusseldorf, Germany

Maurizio Morra Greco

Fondazione Morra Greco, Naples, Italy

Christian & Karen Boros

Sammlung Boros – Berlin, Germany

Timo Miettinen

Salon Dahlmann – Berlin, Germany

Marli Hoppe-Ritter

Sammlung Marli Hoppe-Ritter – Waldenbuch, Germany

Désiré Feuerle

The Feuerle Collection – Berlin, Germany

Corbett Lyon

Lyon Housemuseum – Melbourne, Australia

Geert Verbeke-Lens

Verbeke Foundation – Kemzeke, Belgium

László Vass

Vass Collection – Veszprém, Hungary

Daisuke Miyatsu

Dream House – Ichikawa, Japan

Samara Walbohm & Joe Shlesinger

Scrap Metal Gallery – Toronto, Canada

Charles Riva

Charles Riva Collection – Brussels, Belgium

Venke & Rolf Hoff

KaviarFactory – Lofoten, Norway

Alain Servais

Servais Family Collection – Brussels, Belgium

Ivo Wessel

Sammlung Ivo Wessel - Berlin, Germany

Ramin Salsali

Salsali Private Museum – Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Vittorio Gaddi

Collezione Nunzia e Vittorio Gaddi – Lucca, Italy

Miguel Leal Rios

Fundação Leal Rios – Lisbon, Portugal

Gertraud and Dieter Bogner

Kunstraum Buchberg – Gars am Kamp, Austria

Bob Rennie

Rennie Collection at Wing Sang – Vancouver, Canada

Heiner Wemhöner

Sammlung Wemhöner – Herford, Germany

Lin Han

M WOODS – Beijing, China

Kenny Goss

The Goss-Michael Foundation – Dallas, USA

Karsten Schmitz

Arbeitswohnung Federkiel – Leipzig, Germany

Devon Dikeou

The Dikeou Collection - Denver, USA

Thomas Olbricht

ME Collectors Room Berlin/Stiftung Olbricht – Berlin, Germany

Mera & Donald Rubell

Rubell Family Collection – Miami, USA

Pétur Arason

Safn – Berlin, Germany / Reykjavík, Iceland

Steffen Hildebrand

G2 Kunsthalle – Leipzig, Germany

Frédéric de Goldschmidt

Frédéric de Goldschmidt – Brussels, Belgium

Daniel Teo

The Private Museum – Singapore, Singapore

Claudio Cosma

Sensus – Luoghi per l’arte Contemporanea – Florence, Italy

Michał Borowik

Michał Borowik Collection – Warsaw, Poland

Herbert Gerisch

Herbert-Gerisch-Stiftung - Neumünster, Germany

José Berardo

Museu Coleção Berardo – Lisbon, Portugal

Bärbel Grässlin and Karola Kraus

Sammlung Grässlin - St. Georgen, Germany

Joëlle and Eric Romba

Rocca Stiftung – Berlin, Germany

Myriam and Amaury de Solages

Maison Particulière – Brussels, Belgium

Friedrich Gräfling

Sammlung Fiede - Aschaffenburg, Germany