Bukowskis Stockholm

The house was founded in 1870 by Henryk Bukowski, a Polish nobleman and political émigré who had arrived in Sweden with little more than his connoisseur's eye and a remarkable network. On 22 April 1870, the Stockholm Governor's Office granted Bukowski - as a foreign citizen - official permission to trade in works of art and antiques. What began as a modest gallery quickly gained the attention of Stockholm's elite. The first major sale, in 1873, featured a collection from King Karl XV himself, establishing the house's royal connections. Bukowski is credited with introducing the first catalogued auctions in Sweden, professionalizing what had been an informal trade. By the 1920s, the house had secured exclusive rights to auction the celebrated etchings of Anders Zorn - a coup that cemented its position at the pinnacle of the Swedish art world.

Over the decades, ownership passed through several notable hands. The Bukowski family sold the business at the turn of the 20th century, and in 1991 Göran Gustafsson Kapital AB acquired the company. The Lundin family - Sweden's oil dynasty - purchased Bukowskis in 2007, investing in its digital transformation and international reach. Then, in January 2022, the London-based auction house Bonhams announced the acquisition of Bukowskis, integrating the Nordic leader into a truly global network alongside salerooms in London, New York, Hong Kong, Paris, and Los Angeles.

Today, led by CEO Louise Arén with a staff of approximately 100 across five locations in Sweden and Finland, Bukowskis continues to dominate the Nordic auction calendar. The house consistently accounts for the majority of the top 15 most valuable artworks sold on the Swedish market each season. Recent record-breaking sales include Isaac Grünewald's expressionist masterpiece Cirkus (1918) at 17.25 million SEK - a world record - Akseli Gallen-Kallela's Isbildning at 8.625 million SEK, Fernando Botero's El cuarto de baño at 8.125 million SEK, and a Banksy Girl with Balloon that soared to 2.2 million SEK. In the design department, Jonas Bohlin's iconic concrete chair and his Slottsbacken cabinet have both set world records under the Bukowskis hammer.