Stories

The Ernie Barnes bidding war and the final victory of Anne Bass

Detailed and illustrated results from tonight's 21st Century Evening Sale at Christie's including need-to-know lots by Anna Weyant, Salman Toor, Tom Sachs, and more

How we should think about the Warhol sale plus impressive prices for Cy Twombly, Ann Craven, and Mary Heilmann

Sotheby’s Hong Kong sale cycle was overshadowed by China’s zero Covid policy, but that didn’t seem to dampen demand. Over four sales, nearly $200 million in art was sold and sell-through rates were in the ninetieth percentiles for the Evening sales and eightieth percentiles for the Day sales. 

Eric Turquin, who sells Old Master paintings at Artcurial, called the Jean-Simeon Chardin still life of strawberries a trophy picture. Today the work received a trophy price when a dealer paid a €20.5 million hammer price. The painting had been held in the same family for generations. The descendants ofm19th-century co

Emerging artists continue to be the stars of the market The New York mid-season auctions totaled $72,550,634 with 550 lots offered and 467 sold.

Demand for emerging art continues to out-pace supply but the momentum slowed slightly at Sotheby's

Demand for Drexler, Bontecou, Schnable, Ismail, Omofemi and Hughes drive the mid-season market. Christie’s mid-season Post-War and Contemporary art sale in New York totaled $26,117,178, which reflects a strong hammer ration of nearly 1.4 with a sell-through rate of 82% on the 184 lots offered.

Eddie Martinez, Kaws, Kerwick and Condo top the strong middle market sale. Phillips New Now made $8.4 million with a 169 lost sold out of 195 offered for a sturdy 89% sell-through rate continuing the strength of the market for emerging artists.

The works get sold under the heading of Modern British and Irish art but many of the artists have become leading lights of the Modern art market—like Bridget Riley and Barbara Hepworth—while others continue to be highly prized by collectors like L.S. Lowry and David Bomberg.

A market that favors emerging talent plays to Phillips strength. Phillips Evening sale in London made £30.1 million or $39.5 million with 39 of the 41 lots offered sold. Another six lots were withdrawn pre-sale.

The total for Sotheby’s London Evening sales was $296,145,253 with 65 of the 76 lots offered finding buyers. That 85% sell-through rate would have been a very strong sale in the age before auctions were so heavily managed.