By Patricia Dane Rogers
Special to The Washington Post
Thursday, June 17, 2004; Page H03

Sotheby’s sale of “Important 20th Century Design” at 2 p.m. today in New York showcases furnishings by architectural giants Alvar Aalto, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Frank Lloyd Wright. The rare Wright stuff includes items never offered at auction before, including a 900-square-foot office that served as his San Francisco headquarters from 1951 until his death in 1959. The redwood paneled space, consisting of a waiting area, a drafting area and Wright’s private inner sanctum, has a $250,000 to $400,000 estimate. “It has been dismantled and packed away in crates in a Baltimore art storage facility,” says James Zemaitis, senior vice president and director of Sotheby’s 20th-century design department. “Whoever buys it is basically acquiring a gigantic kit with a legendary provenance. It’s one of only four he designed — the last that can be disposed of this way.”

A turn-of-the 20th century Wright designed oak library table sold by Barbra Streisand for $222,500 at Christie’s in 1999 is making a return appearance on the market, with a pre-sale estimate of $250,000 to $350,000. Prospective bidders still have time to set up a Sotheby’s account by calling 212-606-7414 and faxing a copy of their driver’s license and an absentee form obtained on line at www.sothebys.com.

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