Artmarket

Lucian Freud at the Pompidou Could Boost Prices

Filed under: Art

Lucian Freud is coming back to the Centre Pompidou for the first time since his first retrospective was held in 1987 – at the same museum. Historically, these exhibitions have been great for collectors of Freud's work, according to Artprice.

A 2002 Freud retrospective at the Tate kicked off a nearly immediate 185 percent increase in the index for this artist, and by 2004, he became a staple at prestigious auctions, and his sales revenue surged 450 percent. In 2005, the Freud price index, according to Artprice, gained 41 percent, and demand for his work was substantial. He debuted on the list of top 10 artists at auction, with an aggregate total of $33.7 million for the year.

Of course, the 2005 results paled in comparison to 2008, in which Roman Abramovich made Freud the most expensive living artist (seizing the title from Jeff Koons) with the $30 million purchase of "Benefits Supervisor Sleeping" – a familiar enough topic for anyone who's looked for some help from the human resources department. Yet, the upside was short-lived.

No piece by Freud crossed the $1 million mark in 2009, and with only $405,000 in auction results, he ranked 1,327th at auction, just above ... someone who is likely irrelevant in the global art community. The auction houses couldn't try to sell the good stuff, though, because nobody would put it on the block. Only prints and drawings were offered.

Did the Sotheby's auction last month signal a turn? Both "Self-Portrait with a Black Eye" and "Guy and Speck" crossed not just he million dollar but the million pound threshold, though the hype around Freud failed to materialize. Maybe Freud will lag the market in recovering, but that's probably because the art market is showing such a robust return.

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Tags: art, art market, ArtMarket, france, Jeff Koons, JeffKoons, lucian freud, LucianFreud, paris, Pompidou, PompidouCenter, roman abramovich, RomanAbramovich, tate modern, TateModern

Chinese Artist Leaps Into Top Three Artists at Auction List For 2009

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

A year from now, we'll look back on the art market 2009 as that last slither though the gutter before picking itself back up in 2010. But, we're not there yet: 2009 is in the rearview mirror, so it will remain our baseline for the next 12 months. When looking at the top performers at auction last year, there's a pretty consistent story – revenue declines ranged from 55 percent to 77 percent relative to 2008. Top 10 mainstays – such as Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Alberto Giacometti, Edgar Degas and Claude Monet – got thrashed. These conditions led to some changes, as well, with a Chinese artist making the top 10 for the first time. In fact, he pushed into the top three.

1. Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso is back on top, after giving up the #1 position in 2008. And, it took only $121 million in auction sales to get him there. From 1998 to 2008, total sales for Picasso gained 96 percent, before falling by 54 percent last year, with pricing off 15 percent. The number of sales pushing past the $1 million mark declined precipitously, from 39 in 2008 to only 15 last year, and his top sale was for "Mousquetaire a la pipe," which moved for $13 million on May 6, 2009, at Christie's. This year could be a bit tough for Picasso collectors, as Artprice believes certain paintings were still overpriced.

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Tags: andy warhol, AndyWarhol, art auction, art auctions, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtMarket, asia, asian art, AsianArt, auction, china, chinese, chinese art, ChineseArt, Christies, ChristiesAuction, ChristiesAuctionHouse, giacometti, Hong Kong, HongKong, Pablo Picasso, PabloPicasso, picasso, qi, warhol

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Art Market Analysis: Revenue Surges 255%, Confidence Climbs

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The Christie's and Sotheby's February contemporary art sales surged 255% year-over-year, thanks in large gain relative to the severely depressed baseline created by the financial crisis. Continuing a trend that began last November, with the $39 million sale of Andy Warhol's "200 One Dollar Bills," the art market's showing solid and healthy growth, not a return to the abject stupidity of 2007.

How can you tell the difference? Well, the fact that Alberto Giacometti's "L'homme qui marche I" set a new record at £58 million while Lucian Freud's much-hyped self-portrait with black eye failed to reach the low-end presale estimate, despite the fact that Sotheby's billed it as "the most important self-portrait by the artist ever to he appeared at auction." This represents a profound departure from the prices of $30 million or more that his work used to command.

At Christie's, Yves Klein was responsible for around quarter of the revenue that came in the door, though work by Andy Warhol, Peter Doig, Martin Kippenberger and Richard Prince crossed the £1 billion threshold.

The Art Market Confidence Index by Artprice indicates that art prices will increase over the next quarter.

Tags: andy warhol, AndyWarhol, art auction, art auctions, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtMarket, Christies, ChristiesAuction, ChristiesAuctionHouse, giacometti, lucian freud, LucianFreud, peter doig, PeterDoig, richard prince, RichardPrince, Sotheby, sothebys

Basquiat and Others Beat Minimum at Phillips de Pury Art Auction

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The action was small at only $9.6 million, but big names were featured at the Phillips de Pury art auction on Friday night. Donald Judd and Jean-Michel Baquiat went under the gavel and home with collectors for the third auction in a row. This follows solid results at Christie's and Sotheby's, marking a distinct turn in the fortunes of the art market.

Phillips de Pury didn't match Sotheby's and Christie's in terms of above-estimate totals and older works, but that really is the norm. So, I wouldn't view the fact that it only hit the middle of its presale estimate pessimistically. Given what was sold earlier in the week at the larger houses, the Phillips sale does nothing but confirm the direction of the art market.

Established artists did continue to rise aove the fray, with Judd's 1987 sculpture, "Untitled (87-29 Studer)," selling for £735,650. Basquiat's "Cash Crop" landscape and collage "Untitled" were the second best sellers behind Judd's work at £713,520 each. All beat their low-end estimates of £600,000.

There was a concern that Phillips would struggle to attract buyers, particularly because the auction was focused on living artists. While the challenge may not have been evident from the fact that 86 percent of the lots sold, it was confirmed by the tendency of them to move at the low end of the presale range.

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Tags: art auction, art auctions, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtMarket, auction house, auction houses, AuctionHouse, AuctionHouses, basquiat, Christies, ChristiesAuction, ChristiesAuctionHouse, donald judd, DonaldJudd, jean-michel basquiat, Jean-michelBasquiat, phillips de pury, PhillipsDePury, Sotheby, sothebys

Christie's Auction Pumped by Yves, Keeps Art Market Recovery Going

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The 51 lots that Christie's sent under the gavel last night were chosen carefully. The auction was designed to succeed ... which is what you would have thought of every auction until the middle of 2008, right? Nonetheless, the auction house made some bold moves in an effort to push up prices, but only offered lots that would justify putting the necks of its constituent decision-makers on the chopping block.

With a final tally of more than $61 million in line with the high end of the presale estimate, it would appear that Christie's made some smart calls. Forty-six of the lots achieved sale, with one clearing £5 million, nine surpassing £1 million and 16 beating $1 million. Compared to last year's sale, when only 29 lots were offered, the total take surged 3.7X. I tend to be pretty skeptical, but even that sort of result is enough to make me admit that the art market's recovering.

Buyers in Europe and Britain were most active, picking up 41 percent and 33 percent of the sales, respectively. Collectors in the United States followed with 22 percent and Asia at 4 percent.

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Tags: andy warhol, AndyWarhol, art auction, art auctions, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtMarket, auction, auction-house, AuctionHouse, auctions, britain, Christies, ChristiesAuction, ChristiesAuctionHouse, england, laurence graff, LaurenceGraff, london, Sotheby, sothebys, warhol, yves klein, YvesKlein

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Freud Flops at Sotheby's Surges in Contemporary Art Auction

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

It looks like art market watchers (including me) were right for the wrong reasons. At the Sotheby's contemporary art auction last night, $84.5 million in sales were completed, but the highly coveted Lucian Freud didn't hit its low estimate. Lucio Fontana, Yves Klein, Willem de Kooning, Peter Doig and Frank Auerbach, however, led to pitched bidding battles.

The evening's highest price was paid for de Kooning's "Untitled XIV," which fetched 4 million pounds over the phone, beating its high-end estimate by a third. The seller was a collector from Europe who picked up the painting from the artist's estate. Doig's "Saint Anton (Flat Light)," an Alpine scene, was good for 2.8 million, also via phone.

But, Lucian Freud still stole the spotlight, if not the top bid. His self-portrait with a black eye carried a low-end presale estimate of 2.8 million – after having been offered at a lower price in private sale before the auction. The seller, Victor Chandler, is a bookmaker based in Gibraltar with a penchant for secrecy: his press officer refused to be named (according to Bloomberg News).

The Lenz collection, also high-profile, performed very well at Sotheby's. Only one of the 47 lots wasn't able to move, and the entire collection sold for 23.2 million pounds, soundly beating a presale estimate of 11.2 million pounds to 15.2 million pounds. The most expensive piece was Klein's "Fire" painting "F 88," which brought in 3.3 million pounds, just shy of its high estimate of 3.5 million.

The evening's surprise came from Auerbach, who's 1956 drawing was purchased by London art dealer Offer Waterman for 1 million pounds, far above the presale estimate of 50,000 pounds to 80,000 pounds. Interestingly, Sotheby's senior international specialist Oliver Barker noted to Bloomberg News, "The gap between Auerbach and Freud and Bacon is closing." Are we seeing a new evolution in the Francis Bacon supply chain?

Overall, the contemporary art auction beat its high-end presale estimate of 45 million pounds and thrashed the 2009 result for the same auction, a mere 17.9 million pounds for 27 lots.

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Sotheby's to Collectors: We Will Get Our Money

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

It looks like not all the revenue ticked up at auction last fall turned into a tangible upside for Sotheby's. The auction house is suing two Chinese buyers for $270,300 because they never paid the tabs they bid up. According to Sotheby's, the winning bidder of a Qing Dynasty cloisonné censer and cover didn't pony up the cash required, "despite repeated requests and demands." Ouch! Another ~~purchased~~ took five antique paintings without paying the tab, Bloomberg News reports.

According to Kevin Ching, CEO of Sotheby's Asia division, the company wants "to send a message it won't stand for defaults." Ching continues, "We can't have people bid at our auctions and disappear without paying." To show he's serious, he says he's willing to pursue legal action in mainland China, on the off chance that "they think the long arm of Hong Kong law couldn't reach them." And, with Hong Kong now the third largest art market in the world (after New York and London), the message will reach a pretty broad audience.

Sotheby's won't reveal the identities of the non-payers, citing confidentiality policies.

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Tags: art auction, art auctions, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtMarket, auction, auction houses, auction-house, AuctionHouses, auctions, china, Hong Kong, HongKong, sothebys

Russians, Chinese and British Diamond Dealer Fueling Art Market

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

All secrets eventually come out. At the recent London auctions, in which both Sotheby's and Christie's saw several lots set records, Russian collectors poured some money back into the art market, and Laurence Graff, chairman of Graff Diamonds, parted with a healthy dose of cash. It's this action that caused a combined tally of £258.9 million (including fees), more than double the result a year earlier.

The UK-based diamond dealer sunk £8.1 million into Pablo Picasso's "Tete de Femme (Jacqueline) at the Christie's auction, spending 100 percent more than the high-end presale estimate for the piece. According to Bloomberg News, Graff confirmed the acquisition by e-mail.

Russian billionaires got back into the game, as well, and they exercised better judgment than they did during the art boom, when prices for artists such as Damien Hirst were propelled to absurd levels.

The Impressionist sector has held on rather well, by comparison. "The market for Impressionist and modern art hasn't been as frothy and speculative as contemporary," said Guy Jennings, partner in the London-based dealership Theobald Jennings. "Last year, prices might have slipped five or 10 percent, but since then there's been some asset inflation. That might not be the case in six months' time if there's a double-dip recession."

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Sotheby's and Christie's Show that Art Market Comeback Is Real

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The art market's biggest question turned out to have a $200 million answer at Sotheby's on Wednesday night. Led by Alberto Giacometti's "L'Homme Qui Marche I," which an anonymous bidder picked up for more than $104 million, the auction house realized a total take of $235.7 million on 31 sold lots. Nobody expected this outcome, not even the most optimistic art market spectators, let alone a committed pessimist like me. Of course, my first instinct is to suggest that we wait for the contemporary art sales next week, but it's hard to deny that this week's outcome is both promising and exciting.

The Giacometti set a new record for the artist, sailing past the $27.5 million picked up by "Grand femme debout II" at a Christie's sale in May 2008. In driving nearly half the auction's sales, this piece made it clear that the art market comeback is more than the wishful thinking of collectors who have spent more than a year and a half watching their pieces lose value. A year from now, we'll be looking at "Homme" as the symbol of the art market's recovery, much as we've come to see that final $85 million Francis Bacon sale in May 2008 as the peak before the decline.

Eight lots failed to sell at the Sotheby's Impressionist and Modern evening sale, but this hardly matters when considered against the auction's overall performance. Presale expectations were beat by more than 100 percent, thanks in large part to the fact that 17 of the lots sold for more than £1 million each. Three lots crossed the £10 million threshold. Works by Georges Seurat, Paul Cezanne, Gustav Klimt and Camille Pissarro easily pushed into seven-figure territory.

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Tags: art market, ArtMarket, auction houses, auction-house, AuctionHouses, auctions, cezanne, Christies, ChristiesAuction, ChristiesAuctionHouse, giacometti, gustav klimt, GustavKlimt, klimt, Sotheby, sothebys

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Old Masters Move at Sotheby's Auction

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

Sotheby's reached the high end of its presale estimate for its Important Old Master Paintings and Sculpture auction on Thursday. The sale was expected to generate between $38 million and $55 million, and the final result came in at $53.4 million. The top performer was "Jupiter and Antiope," a 1612 mythological scene by Hendrick Goltzius, though the $6.7 million winning bid failed to reach the low end of its presale estimate of $8 million to $12 million. The last high for this artist, though, was $1.5 million, set in 1996 when the art market was recovering following the burst of its early 1990s bubble.

Rembrandt's "Portrait of a Young Woman with a Black Hat" was also estimated at $8 million to $12 million, but the painting never made it under the gavel. The piece was withdrawn at the seller's request, Sotheby's told ArtInfo. He'd picked up the piece at a Sotheby's New York auction in January 2007 for $9 million, paying much more than the $3 million to $4 million estimate.

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Christie's Sees Art Market Recovery in 2009, Guarantees to Come Back

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

It looks like Christie's agrees with me (or, I agree with Christie's): the art market is going to recover this year. The auction house, which is bringing some powerful inventory under the gavel at its contemporary art sale next month, expects the market to recover this year. With the improvement in conditions, price guarantees may return, as well.

In 2009, Christie's states, sales fell to 2.1 billion pounds, a decline of 24%. For the contemporary category, which was hit worst by the art market slump, sales dropped 59% to 244.3 million pounds -- in 2007, it only took a handful of pieces to get up to this amount.

According to Edward Dolman, chief executive of Christie's, "These figures were much better than we expected." He observed to Bloomberg News, "The art market is vulnerable and we thought we'd be down 50 percent, as we were in the last recession in 1991." Christie's, along with the other major house, Sotheby's, were able to compensate for weakness in contemporary art with sales of Old Masters, wine and jewelry. Also, performance in Asia contributed to the salvaging of 2009, where average selling rates by lot gained 5% to 80% in 2009.

The Old Masters group gained 1% last year, one of only four categories to show an up-tick in 2009. The best performer, however, was the 20th Century Decorative Arts category, which posted a 149% increase, helped along by the 21.9 million euros paid for an Eileen Gray chair at the record-setting Yves Saint Laurent sale.

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What Happened to Damien Hirst?

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

In 2008, an astounding 65 pieces by Damien Hirst fetched seven-figures each at auction. The total came to $230 million. The numbers are nothing short of staggering, especially when you compare it to what he did six years earlier, when the annual total for his work hit a mere $2 million. Clearly, some excitement was generated, and art collectors rode the wave. The last major sale was conducted at Sotheby's on September 15 and 16. "Beautiful Inside My Head Forever," as it was called, made a killing for the hottest living artist ... right before the financial world went to straight to hell. This bold move, however, led to a period of silence for the artist and stagnation for his collectors.

Shortly after the mortgage market mayhem became a global financial affair, unsold rates for Hirst's work shot from 11 percent to 55 percent by the end of the year. A mere 12 months after his he emptied the insides of his head -- not to mention plenty of inventory -- prices for Hirst's work returned to 2004 levels. A year after buying "Butterfly" painting "I Miss You" in late October 2008, Christie's unloaded it for a mere $450,000, only half what it had paid. In 2004, the piece's initial auction price was $415,000. I suspect this is at least part of the reason why the auction houses backed away from guaranteed minimum pricing ...

With the books closed on 2009, only two pieces by Hirst pierced the million dollar mark, both from the "Butterfly" series. "Tranquility" brought in $1.5 million back in May at an auction in Hong Kong. Almost half a year later, "The Importance of Elsewhere-The Kingdom of Heave" brought in close to $2 million, again at a Hong Kong auction. Both sales came from Seoul, not the usual New York and London communities.

Tags: art auction, art auctions, art collecting, art collection, art collector, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtCollecting, ArtCollection, ArtCollector, artist, Artists, ArtMarket, auction, auction house, auction houses, AuctionHouse, AuctionHouses, auctions, Christies, damien hirst, DamienHirst, Hong Kong, HongKong, Sotheby, sothebys

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High Hopes for London Art Auctions

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The London art auctions are upon us, and a year has made a hell of a difference. The auctions at Christie's, Sotheby's and Phillips de Pury are expected to fetch at least $104 million, which would be an increase of 68 percent over the same season in 2009. If the houses can pull this off, the art market will probably breathe a collective sigh of relief after more than a year of downright awful results.

At this point last year, the art market was in miserable shape. It was already in trouble, as the recession had begun to crystallize over the summer of 2008, a process which was hardened by the financial market meltdown in September. By the end of the year, prices had plummeted, and the practice of guaranteed minimum pricing had generally been abandoned.

By the end of 2009, signs of a recovery began to emerge, though few were willing to commit to it. A few pieces, such as Andy Warhol's "200 One Dollar Bills" turned in strong performances, but nothing was solid enough to call a trend. Nonetheless, hopes are high for the next round of sales, which will include museum-caliber paintings by Peter Doig and Yves Klein. Shown at right is Andy Warhol's Dollar Sign estimated at $1,950,000 - $2,925,000 at Christie's London Post War and Contemporary Art Evening Auction on February 11.

Tags: andy warhol, AndyWarhol, art auction, art auctions, art collecting, art collection, art collector, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtCollecting, ArtCollection, ArtCollector, Artists, ArtMarket, artwork, auction house, auction houses, AuctionHouse, AuctionHouses, basquiat, Christies, damien hirst, DamienHirst, england, jean-michel basquiat, Jean-michelBasquiat, Jeff Koons, JeffKoons, london, lucian freud, LucianFreud, peter doig, PeterDoig, phillips de pury, PhillipsDePury, sothebys, yves klein, YvesKlein

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Artists to Watch in 2010

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art

What does 2010 have in store for the art market? Well, it's starting to look like this is the year the market will finally (begin to) recover, though there could be some trepidation at points. Better pieces are coming under the gavel, and serious collectors are interested in artists with real track records. As things loosen up, emerging artists and those just past that stage (think Ben Krell for the former and Nelson Diaz for the latter) will start to see better conditions, as the logjam in the auction houses, once broken, should ease the pressure on galleries and also lead to some progress in private sales. Basically, the return of liquidity to the art market will be better for everyone.

Almost everyone.

This year, some artists won't enjoy as much of the recovery (if it happens ... just to hedge our bets) as others. Their prices were run up too quickly, making the subsequent fall severe. These artists, auction darlings who don't have the history or potency of a Lucian Freud or even a Richard Prince. Yet, they shot out of the emerging artist category years ago. In 2010, these artists, including Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons, will occupy something of a purgatory, as the art market resets values through upward bidding, now that the decks have been washed clean.

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Is Contemporary African Art Ready to Jump?

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The first decade of the new millennium was the domain of Latin America, Asia, Turkey and Russia. A robust art market emerged in the Middle East, which brought with it plenty of interest in the region's artist. But, what about Africa? The continent has been underrepresented in galleries and at auction, but it looks like collectors eager to try something new may be developing an appetite for African art.

The region's offering is both large and incredibly diversified, according to a report by Artprice, and over the past 20 years, several African artists have been able to garner some attention at international art fairs and major exhibitions. Pieces have been featured sporadically, with a show at the Centre Pompidou in Paris in 1989 and anther two years later at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York. The Africa Remix exhibition toured from 2004 to 2007 ... and that's about it.

There's been a bit more action in the auction market, with Sotheby's becoming the first major house to sell contemporary African art in June 1999, when it sent the Jean Pigozzi collection under the gavel in London. It generated less than $16,000 but still set a record. Since then, Sotheby's hasn't dedicated any London or New York sales to African art (aside from its work with South African auctioneer, Stephan Welz & Co). Bonhams has taken more of an interest in the category, holding an African art sale back in April and moving 64 percent of the lots offered.

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