The Vienna Dorotheum is auctioning 150 lots from the estate of soprano Edita Gruberová online until September 7th.
After her debut in 1970 as Queen of the Night in Mozart's "Magic Flute" at the Vienna State Opera, Gruberová fled Czechoslovakia in 1971, gave guest performances internationally and became a permanent member of the ensemble at the Zurich Opera House.
In 2021 she died in her adopted country of Switzerland.
Celebrated as the "Queen of Bel Canto", Gruberová was a passionate collector who kept and exhibited sheet music, photos, autographs and paintings of personal significance in her house.
The singer was friendly with the painter Ernst Fuchs, who portrayed her several times, for example in 1989 as "The Lady of the Camellias" in "La Traviata".
The 150 by 150 centimeter oil painting is called up at 7000 euros.
Among the numerous stage costumes in the estate is the robe made of orange silk taffeta, decorated with sequins and lace, which Gruberová wore at her last performance in 2019 (estimate: 900 euros).
The artist wore the most magnificent of her pieces of jewelery exclusively on stage: a necklace set with pearls, 25 carat old-cut diamonds and colored stones from around 1900, which could also be worn as a tiara: a piece for the very grand opera (45,000).