Art News

Sotheby’s Contemporary Curated Auction Sets Record for Online Sale

George Condo painting of two figures in stripped bathing suits

While art sales have been taking place online for years, for auction houses, closing in-person sales and viewings is still a leap into the unknown. Sotheby’s London tested the waters this week with their Contemporary Curated auction, and hopefully, the success of their sale is an indication of a still vital market.

Auction

Georgia O’Keeffe’s 'Seaweed' takes a Tangled Path to Auction

Georgia O’Keeffe’s small, square oil on canvas titled Seaweed, organic forms in purple and green with white streak up the middle

In New York on March 5, Sotheby’s will offer Georgia O'Keeffe's diminutive painting, estimated at $300,000-500,000, alongside more than one hundred works of art and personal effects from the collection of artist Juan Hamilton.

Auction

8 Big Sales from Christie's Modern Art and Impressionism Sale

Rene Magritte painting of a man in a bowler hat silhouetted against trees at night with a full moon above

Setting a new world record for the artist, one of Art Deco’s most prominent artists, Tamara de Lempicka, lead Christie’s recent Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale on February 5. Portrait de Marjorie Ferry sold for $21,164,000, marking the first time a female artist has lead an Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale.

Other notable sales include George Grosz’s Gefährliche Straße (Dangerous Road) of 1918, a frightening vision of Berlin at the outbreak of World War I, which set a record for the artist at $12,662,325.

Auction

Three Americana Treasures that Surprised Experts at Auction

Weathervane depicting a Fire Pumper and Double-Horse Carriage

January brings Americana Week to New York, including a slate of auctions that focus on a range of all-American antiques. Three strong results at Sotheby’s stand out.

Auction

Bill Traylor Folk Art Masterpiece Sets New Record at Auction

drawing of a black dog with a red tongue and a man in a brown hat

A work from a titan of American self-taught art could set a new auction record for the artist.

Auction

$26 Million Cimabue Masterpiece Barred from Export

Cimabue, Christ Mocked (detail), c.1280.

An elderly Frenchwoman had the surprise of her life when she recently found out that a humble religious icon hanging in her kitchen was worth millions of dollars.

Auction

10 Noteworthy 2019 Auction Sales

Despite overall sales being down, this was still a banner year for art auctions, with a huge number of world record-setting sales. Many people are calling the end of this decade a new Gilded Age, and collectors all over the world have been willing to spend enormous sums, on everything from 19th-century Impressionists to Post-Modern masters and iconic street artists. This insatiable appetite for art has been affected by global uncertainties and trade wars, but interest remains strong.

Auction

Odd Lots: A Rare Peek at Jerry Garcia’s Artwork

Snake in a Juggling Show painting by Jerry Garcia, c. 1990.

Any Grateful Dead fan will attest to Jerry Garcia’s power as a musician, but the legendary guitarist and singer was also an accomplished visual artist, a fact known only to a small group of devoted Deadheads.

Auction

Norman Rockwell’s "Before the Shot" Excels at Auction

Before the Shot, an iconic painting by Norman Rockwell, was one of the top lots at Phillips New York’s 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale on November 14. Estimated at $2,500,000 - 4,500,000, the work sold for $4,700,000. This is the first time Before the Shot has been sold publicly. The auction overall realized $108 million, a 22 percent increase from the previous year.

Auction

Artemisia Gentileschi's Lost Lucretia Comes to Auction

Artemisia Gentileschi, Lucretia. Offered by Artcurial November 13.

For forty years, the canvas sat unrecognized in a private collection in Lyon, France. Now the painting, a recently rediscovered work from Baroque master Artemisia Gentileschi, is coming to the auction block.