Exhibition at Bonhams in Geneva from 16 to 18 September
Paris – The Eric A. Peschler collection features remarkable works by some of the most important figures of Soviet Non-conformist artists, to appear for the first time on the market. It will be offered by Bonhams in a forthcoming online auction running from 25 September to 5 October 2026. Formed between the late 1950s and the collapse of the Soviet Union, the collection comprises paintings, works on paper and sculptures by Moscow-based artists, standing a remarkable testament to one of the most intellectually vibrant and independent artistic movements of the twentieth century. Spanning the 1980s, a pivotal decade in late Soviet cultural history, the selection brings together exceptional paintings and works on paper by Dmitry Krasnopevtsev, Grisha Bruskin, Boris Sveshnikov, Viktor Pivovarov, Eduard Steinberg, and Erik Bulatov to name but a few.
Highlights of the collection will be exhibited at Bonhams in Geneva from 16 to 18 September 2026.
Daria Khristova, Head of Sale, said: "Together, these works from the Eric A. Peschler's collection provide an exceptional overview of the artistic innovation that flourished outside official Soviet culture during the final decades of the twentieth century. This collection devoted to these artists is not merely an assembly of works; it is a testimony to resistance, intellectual independence, and the enduring power of creative freedom. This auction offers a rare opportunity to acquire works of outstanding historical and artistic significance and celebrates the legacy of a journalist and author but also a cultural bridge builder between East and West. All of these works have been acquired directly from the artists by Eric A. Peschler."
Throughout a distinguished career spanning several decades, Eric A. Peschler (1922-2005) established himself as a respected journalist, author, broadcaster, and cultural commentator. His work explored the social, artistic, and political landscapes of postwar Europe, with particular attention to cultural exchange between East and West during the Cold War era. Peschler's years living in Moscow provided unique insights into Soviet society and the emerging artistic movements of the time. Through his books, articles, radio programs, and television documentaries, he introduced audiences to influential artists, intellectuals, and cultural developments that were often inaccessible to Western observers.
Leading the sale are two rare still lives by Dmitry Krasnopevtsev (1925-1995), one of the most distinctive voices of the Soviet underground. Renowned for his metaphysical compositions, the artist transformed everyday objects into timeless reflections on memory, silence, and existence. The auction features Still Life with Tree and Jars (1987) and Still Life with Broken Vase (1984), both executed in oil on masonite and estimated at €40,000-50,000 each. The paintings exemplify the artist's mature style, characterized by austere arrangements, subtle symbolism, and an atmosphere of contemplative stillness.
Another highlight is Grisha Bruskin's monumental Logie (1986), estimated at €60,000-80,000. Painted shortly before the artist's international breakthrough and acquired from the artist when he was in Moscow, the work reflects Bruskin's fascination with collective identity, archetypes, and the visual language of Soviet ideology. Rich in symbolism and executed on an impressive scale, Logie stands as a powerful example of one of the most influential conceptual artists to emerge from the Soviet Union.
The sale also includes a striking work by Boris Sveshnikov (1927-1998), The Evening After Death, a large 1987 oil on canvas estimated at €20,000-24,000. A survivor of the Gulag, Sveshnikov developed a deeply personal visual universe populated by dreamlike narratives and haunting figures. This evocative composition demonstrates the poetic and psychological complexity that defines his oeuvre.
Among the most important representatives of Moscow Conceptualism, Viktor Pivovarov (born 1937) is represented by The Literary Dispute (1985), estimated at €20,000-30,000. Through wit, intellectual engagement, and subtle irony, Pivovarov's work explores the mechanisms of language, culture, and memory. Painted during the height of the Moscow Conceptualist movement, the work exemplifies the artist's deeply literary approach.
About Eric A. Peschler (1922-2005)
Swiss journalist, filmmaker and author Eric A. Peschler (1922-2005) developed one of the most significant Swiss private collections of Soviet Non-conformist art assembled in the West. As an editor and correspondent for Swiss public broadcaster, he worked extensively in the Soviet Union, producing political, cultural and social documentaries while maintaining close relationships with artists he had first encountered during the Khrushchev Thaw of the late 1950s.
Living in Moscow for five years, an experience later recounted in his book Privat in Moskau (1966), Peschler gained a rare insider's access to the studios of unofficial artists working outside the Soviet cultural establishment. During the 1970s and 1980s, he was able to visit artists in their studios, observe their creative processes and acquire works directly from them, many of which had never been publicly exhibited under the Soviet regime.
Unlike institutional collectors or market-driven buyers, Peschler acquired these works out of personal conviction and a profound appreciation for artistic freedom. The resulting collection reflects decades of friendship, trust and intellectual exchange with some of the most important figures of Moscow's underground art scene.
In 1987, Peschler produced the landmark Swiss television documentary Glasnost and the New in Tradition – Kabakov, Steinberg, Yankilevsky, offering rare insights into the working environments and artistic philosophies of three leading Soviet artists. He further documented the movement through the influential publications Artists in Moscow: The New Avant-Garde (1988) and Contemporary Drawings from Moscow Studios (1989), which became essential references for collectors and scholars seeking to discover Moscow's unofficial art during the Gorbachev era.
Other highlights of the sale will include:
A rare large-scale geometric composition by Eduard Steinberg (1937-2012), Composition (1982), carries an estimate of €10,000-12,000. Steinberg's meditative abstractions, inspired by Suprematism and spiritual philosophy, remain among the most lyrical expressions of post-war Russian art. The present work's elongated format further emphasizes the artist's search for balance, transcendence, and metaphysical harmony.
Completing the selection is an intimate drawing by Erik Bulatov (born 1933), Portrait of the Artist's Wife (1981), estimated at €10,000-12,000. Executed in coloured pencils, the work reveals a more personal side of the internationally acclaimed artist, whose paintings challenged the visual conventions of Soviet propaganda. Sensitive and finely observed, the portrait offers a rare glimpse into Bulatov's private artistic practice.
A selection of 1987's coloured pencils and pen on paper laid on cardboard by Ilya Kabakov (1933-2023) are offered including Transfer of Energy, 1987, collage on brown cardboard (estimate: €5,000 - 7,000). Kabakov explored everyday Soviet life through conceptual installations and narrative drawings, often infused with melancholy and absurdity.