Selling a US collection of Polish post-war art at DESA Unicum: PLN 3.74 million

Q: Who advised the Dempster Family Estate on the sale at DESA Unicum?

Dudkowiak & Putyra acted as Polish legal counsel to the Dempster Family Estate. The team was led by Michał Puk (barrister, Supervising Partner) with Maksymilian Cudnik (attorney) and Julia Kwiatkowska (trainee barrister), supported by Aleksander Tarko.

Q: Can a foreign owner sell art at a Polish auction house?

Yes. In this case the owners lived in the United States and sold five works through DESA Unicum in Warsaw. The key is a well-negotiated consignment agreement and clear arrangements for transport and insurance.

Q: What does a lawyer negotiate in a consignment agreement?

Above all, when and how the owner gets paid, the minimum price for each work, the commission and costs, and the moment from which the auction house takes custody of the works and bears the risk.

Q: Who is responsible for the works during transport?

It depends on the agreement. The parties should state when custody passes and who insures the works in transit, in storage and during the pre-sale exhibition.

Q: Is the hammer price the amount the seller receives?

No. The hammer price is the winning bid. The buyer pays the auction house’s premium on top, and the seller receives the hammer price less the commission and costs agreed in the consignment agreement.

Q: How quickly can you assess a planned sale?

We reply within 24 hours with a scope and a timeline for the review.

Case study · Art law · Key matter · 2026

PLN 3.74m

Combined hammer price for five works from a US collection of Polish post-war art, sold at DESA Unicum in Warsaw on 30 September 2026.

The Dempster Family Estate holds a collection of Polish post-war art built in the United States over several decades. When the Estate decided to sell part of it in Warsaw, Dudkowiak & Putyra acted as its Polish legal counsel: from the consignment agreement with the auction house to the safe collection, transport and insurance of the works, in a transaction involving parties in Poland, Germany and the US.

Michał Puk, Maksymilian Cudnik, Julia Kwiatkowska and Aleksander Tarko · Meet the team

5 worksHover or tap a work to see its share

Fangor, SU 15 1.6m
Fangor, M 18 1m
Abakanowicz, Koło II 510k
Pągowska, Monochromat VII 340k
Gierowski, Obraz LXXII 290k

Written by Maksymilian Cudnik · Reviewed by Michał Puk

Published: 14 October 2026

Michał Puk · Barrister (adwokat), Supervising Partner · your contact for this matter
[email protected] · +48 22 300 16 74 · We reply within 24 hours with a scope and a timeline.

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Key facts

Client: Dempster Family Estate, United States
Our role: Seller-side counsel in Poland: consignment, transport, insurance
Auction: DESA Unicum, Warsaw · 30 September 2026
Total hammer price: PLN 3.74m5 works sold
Top lot: PLN 1.6mWojciech Fangor, SU 15 (1972)
Artists: Fangor, Abakanowicz, Pągowska, Gierowski
Jurisdictions: Poland · Germany · United States
Team: M. Puk, M. Cudnik, J. Kwiatkowska, A. Tarko

In short: Dudkowiak & Putyra advised the Dempster Family Estate from the United States on selling five works of Polish post-war art at DESA Unicum in Warsaw for a combined hammer price of PLN 3.74 million, covering the consignment agreement, transport, custody and insurance of the works.

The team behind the sale

A cross-border art sale needs lawyers who know commercial contracts and someone who knows how the art market works from the inside. This team had both.

Team leader

Michał Puk Barrister (adwokat) · Supervising Partner
Led the transaction and represented the Dempster Family Estate. Supervises the firm’s commercial, corporate and regulatory practices.
- Art law
- Contracts
- M&A
Profile
Maksymilian Cudnik Attorney (radca prawny) · Counsel
Commercial and transaction lawyer working in Polish, English and German, which mattered in a deal with a party in Germany.
- Commercial contracts
- Cross-border deals
- PL · EN · DE
Profile
Julia Kwiatkowska Trainee barrister · Associate
Member of the corporate and commercial team, supporting the review of the consignment documents and the transaction.
- Corporate
- Contracts
Profile

Art-market experience on the team

Aleksander Tarko worked in the art trade before joining Dudkowiak & Putyra and has sold works by Witkacy, Józef Chełmoński and Roman Opałka, among others. He brought the seller’s view of how the art market works to the preparation of the sale.

Art trade
Witkacy
Józef Chełmoński
Roman Opałka

When a collection built over decades goes to auction, the owner needs to know who is responsible for each painting at every step, from collection to settlement.

Michał Puk, Supervising Partner, Dudkowiak & Putyra

Background

Over several decades, Arthur and Elizabeth Dempster built a collection of Polish post-war art in the United States: works by artists who shaped the Polish avant-garde after 1945. The Dempster Family Estate decided to sell part of the collection at DESA Unicum in Warsaw, so that the works would return to the Polish market.

USUnited StatesCollection built over decades; owners based here
DEGermanyA party to the transaction based in Germany
PLPolandExhibition and auction at DESA Unicum, Warsaw

Before the sale, DESA Unicum showed works from the collection at an exhibition in Warsaw. The auction itself, Contemporary Art: Classics of the Avant-Garde after 1945, took place on 30 September 2026.

The challenge

Selling high-value works through an auction house in another country means the owner gives up day-to-day control over the paintings for weeks. The client needed certainty on four points:

01The consignment termsWhen and how the owner gets paid, and the price below which a painting will not be sold.
02Collection and transportWho bears the risk once the works leave the owner, and from which moment.
03InsuranceCover for the works at every stage, from collection to the sale.
04Three legal systemsLegal issues arising from the involvement of parties in Poland, Germany and the US.

Selling art in Poland from abroad?We reply within 24 hours with a scope and a timeline.

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Our role

Our team made sure the client knew who was responsible for each painting at every step. Six stages, from the agreement to the payment.

Click a stage to see what we did at each step of the sale.

Stage 1 · Consignment agreement

We negotiated the consignment agreement with the auction house, including payment security for the client and a minimum price for the paintings.

Stage 2 · Collection

We arranged the safe collection of the works and defined the moment legal custody passed from the owners, together with the risks attached to it.

Stage 3 · Transport

We secured the transport of the works and the risks during transit, in a transaction involving parties in Poland, Germany and the US.

Stage 4 · Insurance and exhibition

We advised on artwork insurance for each stage, including the period when DESA Unicum showed works from the collection at an exhibition in Warsaw.

Stage 5 · Auction, 30 September 2026

At Contemporary Art: Classics of the Avant-Garde after 1945, five works from the collection sold for a combined hammer price of PLN 3.74 million.

Stage 6 · Payment

Payment security was agreed in advance in the consignment agreement, so the client knew when and how the proceeds would reach them.

Stage 1 of 6

The result

PLN 3,740,000

Combined hammer price of five works, excluding auction fees. Two paintings by Wojciech Fangor account for PLN 2.6 million.

Photographs: DESA Unicum, published with permission. Click a work to see its auction result on desa.pl.

Works from the Arthur and Elizabeth Dempster collection sold at DESA Unicum, 30 September 2026. Hammer prices, excluding auction fees. Click a column to sort.
Work	Year	Hammer price
Wojciech FangorSU 15	1972	PLN 1.6m42.8%DESA result
Wojciech FangorM 18	1966	PLN 1m26.7%DESA result
Magdalena AbakanowiczKoło II (Orchidea)	1973	PLN 510k13.6%DESA result
Teresa PągowskaMonochromat VII	1974	PLN 340k9.1%DESA result
Stefan GierowskiObraz LXXII	1959	PLN 290k7.8%DESA result

Worth knowing

Click a card to see the fact behind each common assumption about selling at auction.

Myth“The hammer price is what I will receive.”

FactThe hammer price is the winning bid. The buyer pays the auction house’s premium on top, and the seller receives the hammer price less the commission and costs agreed in the consignment agreement.
Myth“Once it’s at auction, it will sell at some price.”

FactA minimum price protects the seller. If bidding does not reach the reserve agreed with the auction house, the work stays unsold instead of going below its value.
Myth“The auction house is responsible from day one.”

FactRisk moves with the painting. The agreement should say exactly when the auction house takes custody of the works and who insures them in transit, in storage and at the exhibition.

Selling art in Poland? Check

I know when and how I will be paid after the auction.

A minimum price for each work is written into the agreement.

It is clear who bears the risk from collection to sale.

The works are insured at every stage, including transport and the exhibition.

I have checked the rules that apply when parties from more than one country are involved.

0/5

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Preliminary case review

Planning to sell or buy art in Poland? Talk to the team that handled this sale.

We review the consignment terms, the transport and insurance arrangements and the cross-border issues. We reply within 24 hours with a scope and a timeline.

Talk to the team

Michał PukBarrister · Supervising Partner
Maksymilian CudnikAttorney · Counsel

Ask for a preliminary review

[email protected] · +48 22 300 16 74

FAQ

Who advised the Dempster Family Estate on the sale at DESA Unicum?

Dudkowiak & Putyra acted as Polish legal counsel to the Dempster Family Estate. The team was led by Michał Puk (barrister, Supervising Partner) with Maksymilian Cudnik (attorney) and Julia Kwiatkowska (trainee barrister), supported by Aleksander Tarko.

Can a foreign owner sell art at a Polish auction house?

Yes. In this case the owners lived in the United States and sold five works through DESA Unicum in Warsaw. The key is a well-negotiated consignment agreement and clear arrangements for transport and insurance.

What does a lawyer negotiate in a consignment agreement?

Above all, when and how the owner gets paid, the minimum price for each work, the commission and costs, and the moment from which the auction house takes custody of the works and bears the risk.

Who is responsible for the works during transport?

It depends on the agreement. The parties should state when custody passes and who insures the works in transit, in storage and during the pre-sale exhibition.

Is the hammer price the amount the seller receives?

No. The hammer price is the winning bid. The buyer pays the auction house’s premium on top, and the seller receives the hammer price less the commission and costs agreed in the consignment agreement.

How quickly can you assess a planned sale?

We reply within 24 hours with a scope and a timeline for the review.

Sources

Auction results: DESA Unicum, Contemporary Art: Classics of the Avant-Garde after 1945, 30 September 2026. All amounts are hammer prices, excluding auction fees. Photographs of the works: DESA Unicum, published with permission.

Matter facts: Dudkowiak & Putyra matter records. The client is named with consent. The name of the party in Germany is withheld for confidentiality.

No legal advice: this case study describes one transaction. It is not legal advice; every sale needs its own review.