A big auction with major pieces actually beat the top-end estimate – when's the last time you heard that? Wednesday night at Sotheby's, the Impressionist sale brought in $181.8 million, thrashing the high estimate of $163 million and almost tripling the Christie's auction from November 3, 2009. It's also around three times the last equivalent sale by Sotheby's, which was back in May.

The Sotheby's auction was packed with notoriety. Conde Nast's top dog, S. I. Newhouse Jr., sent some work under the gavel, as did Louis Reijtenbagh. Artwork by Giacometti, Picasso and Renoir was sold. Sixty-six lots were offered, with only 10 failing to sell.

New York art dealer Helly Nahmad told Bloomberg News, "The art market is back," but that may be premature. Bidders were chasing the high-quality pieces, and it is tempting to believe that what auctioneer Tobias Meyer calls "a year of abstinence" is over. The fact that the Sotheby's auction was so much greater than that at Christie's, though, makes me want to see a few more sales before calling it a trend.

Summer is slow for the art auction houses – and anyone else who has to step outside into the oppressive heat. But, in air conditioned offices around the world, Sotheby's and Christie's are getting ready for the September auctions in New York. The first will be the Christie's Indian, Chinese, Japanese and Korean auction on September 16 and 17, followed by Contemporary Art on September 23 and 24 at Sotheby's.

The catalogues haven't been published yet, but a little bit of information is starting to slop out. On November 4, for example, Sotheby's will be bringing several Impressionist paintings from the Paul Durand-Ruel collection under the gavel. These works were purchased directly from the artists and have not left the collection since being bought. Durand-Ruel (who died in 1922) supported several of the Impressionist artists. The collection consists of nearly 12,000 pieces – with 1,000 by Claude Monet, 1,500 by Auguste Renoir, 400 by Edgar Degas, 800 by Camille Pissarro and 200 by Edouard Manet.

The economy seems to be turning, albeit slowly. And, stronger pieces are coming to auction. This combination could be the first sign that the art market is on its way back, though it's going to take a while to reach 2007 levels again. For now, let's be patient and just hope for an exciting, full and active autumn auction season.

This fall the Gallerie Nationales du Grand Palais in Paris will host an exhibit of Renoir's 20th century works. Touted as the first monographic study of Renoir since 1985, it will focus on the paintings from his last decades after he bid adieu to formal impressionism. Sure to be a magnificent draw, you can spare yourself some time in line if you lodge at any of Paris' six Concorde Hotels & Resorts.

The company's "Renoir in the 20th Century package" will provide you and a guest priority access to spend time with Paul Durand-Ruel and the Woman at the Well. In addition to two tickets to the exhibition, you'll enjoy a buffet breakfast for two for every night of your stay at any of six hotels in the city of lights, love, and crepes galettes -- including the Hotel Crillon, Hotel du Louvre, and Hotel Lutetia.

The package is available from September 23, through December 21, 2009, and rates for double accommodation rooms begin at €202 ($282 US) per night, per room. You can book at www.concorde-hotels.com/renoir, and don't forget to say hello to Madame Renoir with Bob while you're there.

The Christie's Paris sale of Impressionist and Modern paintings that belonged to French fashion designer Jeanne Lanvin came in far below estimate on Monday. The Washington Post reports that the sale raised euro7.67 million ($9.67 million) at the sale which included works by Pablo Picasso and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Christie's had originally valued the collection at euro20 million ($25.2 million). The top seller was Renoir's "Woman with a Parasol Sitting in the Garden," which went for euro1.16 million ($1.46 million) and has a top estimate of euro1.8 million ($2.27 million). A total of 23 of the 31 lots were sold. Another painting by Renoir, "The Tapestry in the Park (Presumed Portrait of Camille Monet)" went unsold as did works by Edgar Degas, Eugene Boudin and Camille Pissarro.Lanvin, died in 1946 at the age of 79, but was once of France's most influential designers of the 1920s and '30s and created the classic fragrance "Arpege." The paintings hung in her Paris apartment and a portion of the proceeds from the sale will go toward two arts charities run by the Polignac dynasty, the aristocratic family which Lanvin's daughter Marie-Blanche married into.

The Lanvin fashion label remains one of France's oldest fashion houses under the creative direction of Israeli-American designer Alber Elbaz. Recently Stella McCartney hired Frederick Lukoff, the business development director of Lanvin, to lead the British fashion brand, part of the Gucci Group. Lanvin has recently been it talks with potential investors to raise funds to expand.