18 November 2015
Christieʼs last week achieved over a billion dollars in sales from a single week of auctions. This followed the success of their May sale season. Major records were set as collectors from nearly 50 countries bid for rare works by Amedeo Modigliani, Roy Lichtenstein and Lucio Fontana, setting new auction record prices for these 20th century masters. Distinguished provenances continue […]
14 November 2015
In 1952, the world famous artist Henry Moore was invited to provide a design as part of a Christmas fundraising project for a new charity. The artist’s contribution, Madonna and Child, was used on mail labels during the festive period to raise awareness for the National Fund for Research into Poliomyelitis & Other Crippling Diseases […]
12 November 2015
A canvas by the American Abstractionist Cy Twombly has set a $70.5 million auction record for the artist. The “blackboard” painting, Untitled (New York City), 1968, was the highpoint of the Contemporary evening sale at Sotheby’s, which also saw records smashed for artists such as Mike Kelley. The sale total totalled $254–$313.7 million with 44 of 54 works, 82%, finding buyers. The sales […]
10 November 2015
Christie’s has achieved several record prices for artists at their auction in New York last night. The highest prices were for Amedeo Modigliani and Roy Lichtenstein, with the hammer falling at $170.4 million and $95.37 million. Modigliani’s “Nu Couche” created in 1917-18 was the star lot on the evening. It was the first time the painting has ever been […]
8 November 2015
A record price has been achieved for a blue period Picasso at Sotheby’s in New York. La Gommeuse, painted in Paris in 1901, sold for $67.5m (£45m) at Sotheby’s, as the highlight of their Impressionist & Modern sale. The painting which depicts a cabaret artist, had a second painting on the reverse of the canvas showing an erotic image […]
5 November 2015
Sotheby’s New York started off the Autumn auction season yesterday in style by selling $377 of art once owned by billionaire and former Sotheby’s owner Alfred Taubman There were eye watering bids from the usual suspects in America, Asia and Europe. The 77 lots included bluechip works by Picasso, Degas, Monet and Modigliani. The Taubman collection was […]
18 October 2015
As an art adviser and avid collector, I keep my ears perked for rumblings of what’s trending and ‘what’s new’ in the market. With that in mind, I attended a panel discussion last week in NY at Christies on the subject of Contemporary Indian Art. The event was co sponsored by Barron’s Penta magazine editor Richard […]
16 October 2015
The ‘Frieze Week’ auctions at Phillips totalled £38,522,675 / $58,694,880 / €51,305,365 selling 99% by value and 86% by lot. “We are very pleased with tonight’s results,” said Peter Sumner, Head of the Contemporary Art, London of the Contemporary Art Evening Sale. “We sold 100% of our lots to a broad array of buyers. The […]
12 October 2015
David Zwirner has announced the gallery’s exclusive worldwide representation of The Estate of Sigmar Polke. Sigmar Polke (German, 1941-2010) is considered to be one of the most significant and influential artists of the postwar era. His work was recently the subject of a critically acclaimed traveling retrospective that was held in 2014-2015 at The Museum of Modern […]
12 October 2015
An excellent example of Picasso’s Blue Period work will be offered in Sotheby’s New York Impressionist and Modern Evening Sale on 5th November. La Gommeuse, painted in 1901 is thought to carry an estimate of around £60m. The work comes from the exceptional collection of William I. Koch, an American entrepreneur, collector and America’s Cup winner. Picasso […]
8 October 2015
This October 2015, Christie’s will bring together an international selection of over 300 artists to headline the Frieze Week auctions of Post-War and Contemporary Art. A strong line up of some of the most exciting painters working today will form a core of the Post War and Contemporary Art Evening Auction. Led by Peter Doig’s […]
27 September 2015
On 9th December this year, Sotheby’s London will offer for sale John Constable’s The Lock – one of the small group of monumental landscapes, known as the ‘Six Footers’, which for many define the pinnacle of the artist’s career. Depicting a bucolic scene on the River Stour in the artist’s native Suffolk, and painted in […]
25 September 2015
The motif of Edvard Munch’s The Girls on the Bridge has been widely recognised as one of the artist’s most celebrated, from its first unveiling in 1901. As was often the case with his successful works that he did not like to part from, Munch went on to produce several versions of The Girls on […]
25 September 2015
Sotheby’s Frieze week sales in London will be led by one of the greatest works of post-war Italian art ever to appear at auction: Lucio Fontana’s Concetto Spaziale, La Fine di Dio (The End of God), 1963. Never previously offered at auction and last exhibited over 30 years ago, Fontana’s masterpiece is estimated at a […]
20 September 2015
The owner of the original building was bemused when people crowded round his wall. But art aficionados had spotted Banksy’s signature alert on his website of his latest work, ’Donkey Documents’. Banksy created it in 2007 with an aerosol can, as part of a series of works of art along the concrete barrier separating the […]
10 September 2015
The painting Arab in Black by South Africa’s leading artist, Irma Stern, sold at Bonhams sale of South African Art in London on 9 September for £842,500 (R17.5m). It is the most expensive South African painting sold this year. Bonhams Head of South African Art, Hannah O’Leary said, “This powerful image from Stern’s highly regarded […]
9 September 2015
Helene Schjerfbeck – one of the most important and renowned artists of the entire Nordic region – was famously reticent in her lifetime, paying little interest to her public profile. Encouraged by her supporters to engage in actively promoting and exhibiting her work in her native Finland, Schjerfbeck went on to exhibit more widely in […]
5 September 2015
The disgraced Collector and former owner of Sotheby’s, A. Alfred Taubman’s art collection will be sold in a series of dedicated auctions beginning this autumn in New York*. The outstanding collection, which comprises more than 500 works stretching from antiquity to contemporary art, is valued in excess of $500 million, making it the most valuable private collection ever offered at […]
4 September 2015
eBay and Phillips have announced a new partnership that unites the world’s most vibrant online marketplace with the contemporary art and design-focused international auction house. Through eBay’s live auctions platform, online buyers will gain access to Phillips highly regarded 20th Century and Contemporary Art, Design, Photographs, Editions, and Watches and Jewelry auctions. Over the next year, Phillips will offer […]
2 September 2015
Since its launch ten years ago in March 2005 in New York, Christie’s First Open sales have become a fixture on the global contemporary art circuit, providing the perfect venue for new and seasoned collectors to discover emerging artists and to explore lesser-known works by well-established names. The September First Open sale includes 370 paintings, drawings […]
31 August 2015
Robin Woodhead, Chairman of Sotheby’s International, has announced the strategic appointments in the Company’s Indian business and the opening of an office in Mumbai, India. Edward Gibbs has been appointed Chairman of Sotheby’s India, Middle East and North Africa and Priyanka Mathew has been appointed Regional Director, Sotheby’s India. The move demonstrates the company’s commitment to providing […]
20 August 2015
Sotheby’s is offering fine art and memorabilia from the personal collection of creative genius and television legend Samuel “Sam” Simon (1955-2015) across a series of auctions in New York through 2015. While widely known and celebrated as the co-creator of The Simpsons, showrunner on Taxi, and a writer/producer/director on countless pop culture icons of the small screen, Sam Simon’s […]
17 August 2015
The forthcoming Made in Britain auction has been announced by Sotheby’s. It is the third edition of a sale uniquely dedicated to celebrating the diversity and creativity of British art from 1900 to the present day, across Fine Art, Prints, Sculpture, Photography, Studio Ceramics, and Design. The sale encompasses almost 400 striking artworks illustrating the very significant role that […]
8 August 2015
Sotheby’s has announced second quarter 2015 earnings. Tad Smith, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Patrick McClymont, Chief Financial Officer, revealed the company’s results followed by a question and answer period and journalists. Sotheby’s Consolidated Sales as of July 1, 2015 has totalled : $3.7 Billion, up 5%. Contemporary Art: Sotheby’s global auction sales of Contemporary Art increased 18% […]
3 August 2015
The United States has again overtaken China as the world’s leading marketplace for art at auction. After a record 2015 the US showed growth due to the sale of major works by Picasso, Giacometti, Monet and Warhol. There was a 20 percent growth in the first six months of 2015, with sales totalling £1.79 billion $2.8 billion (2.5 […]
22 July 2015
Christie’s have announced record half year sales of £2.9 billion, up 8% $4.5 billion, up 0% on last year’s figures from the same period. The Results were seen across numerous categories importantly Impressionist and Modern, Post-War and Contemporary Art and Asian Art. In recent months Christie’s has focused on new curatorial presentations and a revised sales calendar to attract collectors […]
2 July 2015
Sotheby’s has achieved the highest total for any auction of Contemporary Art ever held by the auction house in London. The sale which took place last night (1st July 2015) realised £130,376,500 / $204,730,218 / €183,870,150. Warhol’s One Dollar Bill (Silver Certificate) his landmark first ‘dollar’ painting, hand-painted in 1962, sold for £20.9m / $32.8m / €29.4m tonight – the highest price achieved across […]
1 July 2015
Christie’s Post War & Contemporary Art Evening Auction achieved £95,646,500 / $ 150,069,359 / €134,287,686, with sell-through rates of 87% by lot and 88% by value. Bidders from 34 countries across three continents showed great enthusiasm for works by some of the most exciting contemporary artists alongside classics of the category. The evening established records […]
29 June 2015
Masterpiece London which ends on Wednesday 1 July has reported record visitor numbers and strong sales across the board. The Fair has drawn collectors, curators, and designers from around the globe.Many have purchased exceptional works of art spanning over 4,000 years of art history. This year the Fair welcomed a record 8,900 visitors on its opening day to the […]
27 June 2015
‘Boys With New Ties’ by Sir Peter Blake fetched £662,500 ($1,038,800) at Christie’s London on Thursday, hitting a new world record for Blake at auction and netting a huge return for seller Jinty Stephenson. When the work ‘Boys with New Ties’, a painting by Sir Peter Blake was bought by Jinty Stephenson in the 1950s […]
24 June 2015
Sotheby’s June 2015 Evening Sale Impressionist & Modern Art sale has achieved £178.6m / $ 282.1m / €250.9m. This is the Second-Highest Total for Any Sale Ever Held In London. The sale was led by Gustav Klimt’s 1902 Portrait of Gertrud Loew Sold for £24.8m / $39.1m / € 34.8m The second highest price for a portrait by the artist at auction. A new […]