This fall’s auctions in Christie’s and Sotheby’swith outstanding works, will serve to test a business that in the first half of the year has suffered a decrease in sales of almost 30%, compared to the same period in 2023. The art market, in free fall. Christie’s suffered a 22% drop in sales, reaching $2.1 billion in the first half of this year. For its part, sales at Sotheby’s fell 25% in the first half of 2024, and profits plummeted 88% compared to 2023. Are there reasons for optimism?
There was hope in the designer and philanthropist’s collection Mica Ertegunwhose first of the planned auctions, held last night in the Christie’s New Yorkit was a success. The total amount was 184 million dollars: 100% of the lots in said collection were sold. All eyes were on Magritte’s masterpiece, ‘The Empire of Lights’, and it did not disappoint: it was auctioned in $121.2 millionnot just new record of the artist, but also the highest price paid at auction for a work by surreal art. Let us remember that this year marks the centenary of this movement. The hammer fell after 10 minutes of bidding. Additionally, another work by Magritte with the same title, but this time a drawing, sold for $18,810,000, a new record for a work on paper. He painted 17 versions of this theme in oil, in addition to the drawings.
The Belgian artist has been making a strong presence in the market for some time now. Last year at the fair Tefaf of Maastrichtone of his works, ‘La corde sensible’ (1960), was for sale at the Landau Fine Art gallery in Canada for 35 million dollars, being the most expensive work of that edition. René Magritte is the artist of the momenthighly sought after by collectors, who long for his poetic compositions.
He has managed to make a place for himself in the select group of artists whose works have exceeded one hundred million dollars at auction: Leonardo da Vinci, Gustav Klimt, Amedeo Modigliani, Edvard Munch, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Francis Bacon or Pablo Picasso, who has exceeded that figure several times. No living artist has achieved it at the moment. According to ‘The New York Times’, citing data from Artprice, Magritte is the sixteenth artist to surpass the threshold of 100 million dollars. But many have done so in private sales: transactions that are not public and cannot be verified.
‘Nafea Faa Ipoipo’, by Gauguin, sold for 300 million dollars, was exhibited at the Reina Sofía Museum
Thus, it has been published that the Qatari Royal Family paid 300 million dollars for ‘Nafea Faa Ipoipo’, by Gauguinand 250 million for ‘The Card Players’, by Cézanne. Businessman Steven A. Cohen acquired ‘The Dream’, by Picassoto casino magnate Steve Wynn for $155 million in a private sale in 2013. The ‘Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I’, by Gustav Klimtwas acquired for $135 million by cosmetics magnate Ronald S. Lauder. The portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer, wife of a Jewish industrialist in the sugar industry, is considered one of Klimt’s masterpieces and has been the cause of great disputes between the Austrian Government and a niece of Bloch-Bauer, who defended ownership of the oil painting, which had been seized along with four other paintings by the Nazis during World War II. The five works were given to the niece, Maria Altmann.
Rembrandt’s portraits of Marten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit sold for $180 million
‘The Standard Bearer’, by Rembrandtwas acquired by the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, with the help of the Dutch State, for 175 million dollars. Also by Rembrandt, the portraits of Marten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit They were acquired for $180 million in 2016 jointly by the Rijksmuseum and the Parisian Louvre. It was published that ‘Number 17A’, by Pollockand ‘Exchange’ of Willem de Kooningwere sold together for 500 million dollars.
‘No. 6 (Violet, Green and Red)’, by Rothkowas purchased privately for more than $100 million by the Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev in 2014. He acquired it through the Swiss merchant Yves Bouvier. Rybolovlev learned that Bouvier had bought the painting for about 80 million before selling it to Rybolovlev for more than 100 million. The case went to court. There was a lawsuit for fraud. More private sales that exceeded one hundred million dollars are: ‘Water Serpents II’, by Gustav Klimt (183.3 million), ‘Masterpiece’, by Roy Lichtenstein (165 million), ‘Woman III’, by Willem de Kooning (137.5 million), ‘Flag’, by Jasper Johns (110 million)…
‘Salvator Mundi’, by Leonardo, the most expensive painting in history: 450 million dollars
If we focus on the world of auctions, At number one, and it seems that it will continue to be so for a long time, is Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Salvator Mundi’, acquired by 450 million dollars at an auction held in 2017 at Christie’s New York. It was learned days later that the buyer was none other than Saudi Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. Today it is the most expensive painting in history. As soon as the bombshell news broke on the art market, doubts began to arise about the authenticity of the painting by specialists in the Renaissance master. It was going to be the star of the Louvre Abu Dhabi and was scheduled to be included in the great exhibition that the Parisian Louvre dedicated to Leonardo a few years ago. But the work remains unknown. There has even been speculation that he could be on a yacht. The mystery continues.
Picasso’s ‘The Women of Algiers (version 0)’ sold for $179.4 million
Picasso He is the artist with the most works that have exceeded one hundred million dollars. Thus, ‘The Women of Algiers (version 0)’ sold for $179.4 million at an auction at Christie’s in New York in 2015; ‘The Woman with the Watch’, for 139.5 million at Sotheby’s in New York; ‘Young Woman with a Basket of Flowers’, for 115 million at Christie’s in New York; ‘Nude, green leaves and bust’, for 106.5 million at Christie’s in New York; ”Boy with a Pipe’ was auctioned for 104.2 million in 2004 at Sotheby’s in New York; ‘Woman Sitting at a Window’ sold for 103.4 million at Christie’s in New York…
Warhol’s ‘Shot Sage Blue Marilyn’ sold at auction for $195 million
Among the works of this select ‘club’ there are two of Warhol: ‘Shot Sage Blue Marilyn’, the ‘Sage Marilyn’, considered by some to be the modern Mona Lisa (195 million dollars, at Christie’s in New York) and ‘Silver Car Crash (Double Disaster)’, which was auctioned at 105 .4 million dollars at Sotheby’s in New York. There is also in it two works of Modigliani: ‘Nude lying with open arms’ (170.4 million at Christie’s in New York) and ‘Nude lying on left side’ (157.2 million at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong). Additionally, ‘Three Studies of Lucian Freud’, a triptych by Francis Bacon auctioned for $142 million at Christie’s, New York; ‘The Man Who Points’, by Alberto Giacomettithe most expensive sculpture in history ($141.2 million at Christie’s in New York); ‘The Scream’, by Edvard Munch ($119.9 million at Sotheby’s New York); ‘Untitled’, by Jean-Michel Basquiat (110.5 million at Sotheby’s in New York) and ‘Almiares’, by monet (110 million at Sotheby’s in New York).
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