Pharrell Williams’ third Joopiter auction is an eclectic and cultural mish-mash

Digital-first auction house Joopiter gathers cultural artefacts from the worlds of art, watchmaking and music for its third auction, ‘Just Phriends’. Jupiter founder Pharrell Williams is at the helm of the wide-reaching sale, collaborating with longtime friend Sarah Andelman on the curation of furniture design, fashion and high jewellery.

Sarah Andelman curates ‘Just Phriends’ Joopiter auction

For Andelman, formerly of Parisian concept store Colette, and owner of consulting company Just an Idea, Joopiter’s distinctive curation sets it apart from traditional auction houses. ‘I think Pharrell had the feeling there was a space for a new kind of auction house, with a more special content, maybe more personal, who could touch new generations,’ she says. 

Of curating the ‘Just Phriends‘ auction, she says, ‘I immediately thought the theme should be “around Pharrell” [this time] and to bring together artists he worked with regularly like Takashi Murakami, Kaws, Daniel Arsham, Michael Kagan, FriendswithYou, and brands like Chanel and Louis Vuitton, of course. And to complete the group, we have contributions from artists and designers I worked with, whose work I felt makes sense with Pharrell’s world and values. The big difference here from a classic auction is that most of the lots are new, made especially for this occasion.’

Lots include a piece in fibre glass, steel, wood and LED by Takashi Murakami and Pharrell Williams; an MTV Video Music Awards trophy designed by Kaws; a Richard Mille RM 65-01 Automatic Winding Split-seconds Chronograph signed on the back by Pharrell; and George Condo’s Portrait of an English Lady oil on linen painting.

‘I’m very proud of the diversity of the lots, from a creative, emotional and historical point of view,’ Andelman adds. ‘I love the connection from Pedro Winter’s personal collection of vinyl, to the custom Harry Nuriev DJ table. 

‘We have some themes like “bears” – from the Campana brothers’ bench, to an all-new custom Jean-Charles de Castelbajac jacket, to the Paola Pivi bear eating a Chanel x Pharrell loafer. 

‘We also have multiple astronauts, including the Kaws MTV Moonman Award, the Steven Harrington drawing, and the Michael Kagan sculpture. I think the MSCHF microscopic bag will remain a memorable statement. I’m also very found of the real-size Lego sculpture by Nathan Sawaya and I loved visiting his atelier in Las Vegas where all of his bricks are organised by colour.’

‘Just Phriends’ will be open for global bidding on joopiter.com from 19 to 27 June 2023