NewsAuctions
Los Angeles shows its love for Beirut with online charity art auction
Standout works include a haunting photograph by Rania Matar and an image of Muhammad Ali by French street artist Mr Brainwash
AnalysisArt market
V.S. Gaitonde's £3.4m record-breaking painting leads strong South Asian sales season
Glut of collections have come to auction this month, with strong results for lesser-known Indian Modernists broadening a narrow market
NewsAuctions
This $80m Botticelli could be one of the most expensive portraits ever sold at auction
The painting, to be offered at Sotheby's New York in January, is estimated to sell for 100 times more than the owner paid for it in 1982
NewsBrazil
Court-ordered auction of works from disgraced Brazilian banker's collection prompts new controversy
The Museum of Contemporary Art at the University of São Paulo claims it is owed $3.6m for conserving and storing around 1,600 works repossessed from bankrupt Banco Santos president Edemar Cid Ferreira
NewsDeaccessioning
Cranach, Courbet and Corot: a closer look at what the Brooklyn Museum is selling off
The institution is deaccessioning its only Cranach and 11 other works to finance care of its collection
NewsAuctions
Shipwrecked, disinherited, imprisoned, accused of being a Gunpowder Plotter: Tudor adventurer’s portrait hits the block
Portrait thought to be of Thomas Arundell is to be auctioned at Woolley & Wallis this week
NewsAuctions
Sotheby’s teams up with the Keith Haring Foundation to auction Haring’s personal collection for charity
All works—by artists such as Basquiat, Warhol and Rammellzee—will make their auction debut in the sale, which is expected to make $1m for the LGBTQ nonprofit the Center
NewsArt market
Christie’s to hold marquee sales in New York in early October—but will Sotheby's follow suit?
With no Frieze Art Fair, contemporary art London sales at Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips will now take place at the end of October, when Fiac is due to open in Paris
NewsUAE
World's biggest canvas painting—the size of two football fields—to be auctioned in Dubai for charity
The record-breaking work by the Dubai-based British artist Sacha Jafri will be sold to promote "global digital equality"
NewsArt market
Christies winds up belated summer auction season with £21.2m Classic Art sale led by £4m Rubens
16th century Italian marble attributed to Antonio Lombardo steals the show, but auction house's digital face is showing its age against stiff competition
NewsArt market
Restituted Renaissance battle scene highlight of Sotheby’s pick-and-mix £150m evening sale
Six works were withdrawn by nervy vendors just before the start but Rembrandt to Richter sale still totalled nearly £150m, topped by a £22.3m Joan Miró
NewsBanksy
Banksy triptych—estimated at £1.2m—to be sold at Sotheby's in aid of Palestinian hospital
Artists has donated the works, which were previously on display in his Walled Off hotel in Bethlehem
NewsArt market
Vienna’s Kunsthistorisches Museum seeks to recover ancient Egyptian jars before auction
The vessels, containing 2,600-year-old mummified internal organs, are due to be sold in Munich tomorrow
NewsAuctions
Colville’s Dog and Bridge has its day at Heffel’s live sale in Toronto
But fewer than ten buyers physically attended the auction, with most bidding done over the phone and in the “digital salesroom”
AnalysisArt market
Sanyu, Zao Wou-Ki and Liu Ye: the Asian masters fetching millions at the Hong Kong auctions
Despite pandemic delays and the new National Security Law, the spring sales in the city last week fetched solid results
NewsArt market
How a £3m Soulages almost sank off the coast of Tasmania
The MV Merino had gone aground on its way to Hobart for an exhibition of Modern French art in 1953
NewsArt market
Sotheby's to sell Bridget Riley painting from Heathrow executive lounge as British Airways 'fights for survival'
Auction house appointed to sell £1.4m of art from the beleaguered airline's collection this month
NewsArt market
Christie's $420.9m global relay sale was ambitious—but did they really need four auctioneers?
The four-hour event was intended to illustrate the auction house's global and democratic nature, but it also showed that less is often more
NewsArt market
Sotheby's to auction £4m restituted Bellotto painting that Jewish retail magnate was forced to sell to Hitler
The view of Dresden's Zwinger moat had been returned to the heirs of Max Emden and will now be offered for sale in London on 28 July
AnalysisArt market
Could Covid-19 kill off the market for the art world’s star names?
Some big artists may be toppled from their pre-pandemic pedestals and new ones promoted to the art-as-investment pantheon
NewsArt market
Quran quietly sells for record £7m despite questions over its provenance
Manuscript sold at Christie's first live sale in London since the coronavirus lockdown, but academics say its ownership history should be more transparent
PreviewLondon Art Week
From a £16m Rembrandt to a £3,000 dolphin, London Art Week for every (ok, some) budgets
Highlights from the online version of the “pre-contemporary art” event for galleries and auction houses which launches today and runs until 10 July
NewsAuctions
Waning market for African artefacts? Controversial Benin bronze fails to sell at Christie's
Academics challenge the provenance of the Edo plaque as well as two Igbo alusi figures that sold under estimate for €212,500
NewsArt market
Brave new world: Francis Bacon triptych sells for $84.5m in Sotheby's first major live-streamed evening sale
Marathon online high-tech auction was the first of its kind attempted by Sotheby's and totalled $363.2m, boosting confidence that a top-end market still exists
AnalysisArt market
A brave new virtual world or joyless mundane experience? Glamour of collecting gets lost in online translation
Digital transactions cannot replicate the social cachet of buying art at exclusive events—and prices will inevitably slide as a result
NewsArt market
Friends with benefits: art dealers cosy up to auction houses for online sales
As part of a growing trend, Sotheby's is launching The Dealer's Eye, two sales of works consigned by nearly 40 Old Master galleries in London and New York
NewsArt market
Historic Tunisian items withdrawn from Paris auction after heritage body claims works left country illegally
More than 100 objects once belonging to the Tunisian politician Habib Djellouli, including an ancient Quran, are at the centre of the controversy
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Only joint letter from Van Gogh and Gauguin—recording their brothel visits—comes up for sale
Vincent describes his artist friend as having the “instincts of a wild beast”
NewsArt market
Code-cracking lot: Second World War Enigma machine on offer at Vienna’s Dorotheum
The Germans believed Enigma was uncrackable; cryptographers at Bletchley Park broke the code, contributing to the Allies’ victory
NewsAuctions
Sotheby’s offers major works by 20th century female artists in $50m Ginny Williams Collection sale
Coinciding with the auction house's New York sale room re-opening in June, the sale marks the first time female artists will comprise over two-thirds of the value of an evening auction
NewsArt market
Strong sales as France restarts live auctions
Artcurial, the first auction house to reopen, doubled its sale estimate as lockdown seems to have "sharpened" buyers' appetite
NewsAuctions
Just the one: Christie's scraps major June New York sales in favour of a 'global relay' auction in July
Hybrid sale of 20th century art and design will take place over four live-streamed sessions in Hong Kong, Paris, London and New York
InterviewArt market
'It's a time to do things, not think': Danny Katz on the art of dealing and not overthinking in a pandemic
Ahead of his sale at Sotheby's this month, the London art dealer talks about the obsessive pursuit of knowledge and why he is not interested in contemporary art
NewsAuctions
First live auction in Germany after lockdown features painting bought for Hitler
Neumeister in Munich will today host a live auction for a maximum audience of 20
NewsControversies
Director of France’s national furniture collection defends plans to sell 100 items at auction to aid healthcare workers
Move prompts fears that works from national museum collections could be sold off too
CommentArt Market Eye
Auctions: what will change, post-Covid-19?
In the era of social distancing, auctioneers may have to conduct sales to an empty room
BlogDiary
The curious, spurious tale of David Hockney’s £23m pool painting and Syrian president Bashar al-Assad
NewsArt market
Phillips partners with charitable foundation to benefit New Yorkers hardest hit by coronavirus
The auction house will donate all proceeds from a forthcoming online sale to the New York-based Robin Hood Foundation
NewsAuctions
Charity auction raises more than €2m for French healthcare workers
Paris-based auction house Piasa hosted online sale of 370 works donated by artists, designers and galleries
NewsArt market
Redundancies, pay cuts and staff furloughs at Sotheby's as coronavirus impact bites
Christie's is also making salary cuts and has furloughed between 300-400 staff as lockdown closes auction houses and forces sales online
NewsArt market
Sotheby's postpones New York May 'gigaweek' sales due to coronavirus
Move is in line with Christie's and Phillips which postponed their sales to late June, but Sotheby's is yet to announce when its auctions will actually happen
NewsArt market
Christie's and Phillips move May 'giga-week' New York sales to end of June due to coronavirus
Expanded 20th century art week in US will swallow up London auctions. Sotheby's has yet to make a decision about its New York Spring sales
NewsArt market
In a drastic move, Christie's shuts most locations and postpones sales due to coronavirus
Auction house has closed New York saleroom along with other offices—Sotheby's follows suit while Phillips has postponed all events and sales until mid-May
NewsArt market
Sotheby’s relocates April Hong Kong auctions to New York due to coronavirus
The firm is also rolling its London June sales into one week for the first time in more than a decade
NewsAustralia
Street art auction in aid of Australian bushfire clean-up includes works by Banksy and Shepard Fairey
The Bushfire Relief Auction in Melbourne has been organised by the collectors Sandra Powell and Andrew King and prices start at £200
AnalysisArt market
Phillips’s sale reveals contemporary art's hottest stars but still misses its low estimate
Auction results this week are expected to be down by almost a quarter signalling a "low tide" in London
AnalysisArt market
Christie’s contemporary sale fails to pack a punch as auction house records lowest total in a decade
Brexit casts a shadow over consignments in London, but young American female painters add some pizazz
AnalysisArt market
US banker buys Brexit Banksy at Sotheby's, making a bigger splash than David Hockney’s pool painting
Auction house fields a steady contemporary evening sale in London
NewsBonhams
Bonhams chief executive Matthew Girling to leave auction house
Former jewellery specialist, who joined the firm in 1988, will be replaced by Bruno Vinciguerra, who will also continue in his role as executive chairman
NewsArt market
And all that jazz: upbeat sale at Christie's sees Tamara De Lempicka portrait beat record set just three months ago
Impressionist, Modern and Surrealist art auction last night made £106.8m, 35% down on last year—but with three works sold for over £10m
NewsArt market
Sotheby's new owner Patrick Drahi comes to auction house's first sale in post-Brexit Britain
“No fireworks” at last night's Impressionist, Modern and Surrealist art auction that featured three restituted works
AnalysisBuyer's Guide
How to buy a... René Magritte
The artist’s trademark motifs make his work easily recognisable and desirable—but there is more to this Surrealist than apples and bowler hats
AnalysisBuyer's Guide
How to buy a...Charles White
He chronicled the African American experience when white male abstraction ruled. Now record prices for his work are frequently reset
NewsSalvador Dalí
Dalí and Gala with their 'heads full of clouds' go up for sale at Bonhams
Work will be offered without guarantee from the collection of the late Modernist composer Giancinto Scelsi
NewsAuctions
Sale prices soar past estimates at auction of decorator Mario Buatta's estate at Sotheby's
Christie's also holds its own at an auction of American furniture and folk art
BlogDiary
Artist creates black-faced portrait of Italian far-right politician Matteo Salvini
Current bid for re-imagined image of the controversial party leader stands at €45,000 in online auction
NewsDamien Hirst
Damien Hirst medicine cabinet bought for £600 goes on sale for over £1m
Softer YBA market faces test as collection amassed by London bond trader goes under the hammer at Phillips next month
NewsArt market
Sotheby’s to auction three Nazi-looted works restituted to Jewish collector’s heirs
Two paintings by Signac and one by Pissarro are expected to fetch as much as £20m
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Want to buy a Van Gogh? Sotheby’s has four works with (relatively) modest estimates
Unseen for 25 years, they all come from a very private American collector
AnalysisArt market
Jitters and reasons to be cheerful: art market experts give their 2020 predictions
Faced with economic uncertainty, turmoil in Hong Kong, Brexit and a shrinking auction market, the art trade has some justifiable anxiety about the coming year
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Two Van Goghs sold from the recovered hoard of an Italian fraudster
One painting was hidden in a Parma cellar, leading to the discovery of the Tanzi Treasure
NewsArt market
Amy Cappellazzo becomes head of expanded Fine Arts division as Sotheby's restructures
While her role grows to cover departments such as Old Masters, second global division will include luxury objects and decorative art, jewellery and wine
AnalysisThe Year in Review 2019
From cancelled fairs to street art's auction room takeover: the art market's fruitiest stories of 2019
We look back at the stories that have overturned the art world order this year
AnalysisArt market
'Christmas dinner without the turkey': little festive cheer at Sotheby's Old Masters sale
December auction generates less than half the total of last year's sale, with several lots failing to sell
AnalysisArt market
Tiepolo and Giovanni di Paolo spark excitement in underpowered Christie’s Old Master sale
Auction raised more than last year but supply still limited as Brexit-dominated general election looms
NewsArt market
Rare Tahitian painting by Gauguin sells for €9.5m at Artcurial in Paris
Te Bourao II, which went to an international collector, was on loan to the Met in New York for ten years
NewsArt market
Portrait commissioned by Charles Dickens, unseen for a century, goes on sale at Sotheby's London
The artist William Powell Frith 'almost collapsed' at the honour of being commissioned by the famous writer to paint his heroine Kate Nickleby
NewsArt market
Rediscovered Rubens to star in Sotheby's Old Masters sale in New York
Painting depicting the Holy Family in an evening landscape has been owned by a Manhattan family for more than 60 years
NewsArt market
At $6.8m, Picasso hits the high mark at Toronto sale
Portrait of Dora Maar eclipses other auction offerings at Heffel
AnalysisArt market
Randomness rules New York's $42m American art sales
Small works won out at Sotheby's and Christie's as top lots went for their low estimates or were withdrawn
AnalysisAuctions
New York's autumn sales were subdued but not necessarily septic
Overall sales were down by around 30% but beyond the disappointing headline figures, women and minority artists shone
NewsBanksy
Banksy’s The Drinker withdrawn from Sotheby’s sale after rival artist claims ownership
Sculpture—estimated at £1m—was removed from the street by Andy Link in 2004 but later “liberated” from his East End garden
NewsBanksy
Artist who ‘kidnapped’ Banksy's The Drinker claims ownership ahead of Sotheby's sale
Andy Link says sculpture for which he demanded £5,000 in ransom was later stolen from him. Banksy’s former dealer says otherwise
BlogIn the frame
Philip Roth’s ephemera—including his Richard Nixon plate—goes under the hammer
NewsArt market
'Olyvia's soirées': adviser launches private selling events in format devised by Adam Chinn
Olyvia Kwok launches series of invitation only events in London and New York offering financing against big-ticket works for collectors looking to circumvent auctions
NewsAuctions
Female painters steal the limelight at Phillips contemporary evening sale in London
Market is not “as effervescent as it was”, but £36m total is the auction house’s highest in June for over a decade despite disappointing results for Modern works
NewsAuctions
Flipping the Bacon: Sotheby's £69m post-war and contemporary sale lacks fizz
A £16m Francis Bacon self-portrait and a record for a little-known German artist enliven an otherwise dry sale in London as totals fall 40% on last year
NewsAuctions
Fresh talent breathes life into slim £45m postwar and contemporary evening sale at Christie’s London
Records set for Tschabalala Self and Kara Walker as a new wave of works by contemporary artists come to auction
NewsVincent Van Gogh
Van Gogh’s gun, 'most famous weapon in art history', sells for €162,500
The discovery of the revolver suggests it was suicide, not murder
NewsPride
Swann Auction Galleries joins in Stonewall celebrations with its first Pride sale
Salesroom hopes that capitalising on the trend for curated auctions will help to generate a renaissance in an underserved market
CommentArt market
Auctions are like dating: you can do it online, but sparks only fly in the flesh
The coronavirus lockdown is boosting lower level virtual sales, but only a major live auction will kick-start the top end of the art market and revalidate prices
Philip Hook