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Museum Deaccessions Paintings Done By Whistler Protege

There seems to be a lot of deaccessioning going on at museums around the country. The Rosenbach Museum and Library in Philadelphia is the latest, announcing that it has decided to sell 13 paintings by the British painter Walter Greaves, a friend of James McNeill Whistler's. The museum will sell 12 of the artworks through Christie's New York starting with the Old Master & 19th Century Paintings, Drawings & Watercolors sale on January 26 and others will be sold at the Interiors sale in February. The 13th painting, a portrait of Whistler, may be placed with local museum.

As per the usual terms of deaccessioning, money earned in the sales will go into the Rosenbach's acquisitions fund to be used for being new art. Derick Dreher, the museum's director, told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the decision to sell was made back in October. The Greaves works were acquired in 1911 by Philip H. Rosenbach, an art dealer who founded the museum with his brother, A.S.W. Rosenbach. According to Dreher, Rosenbach spent the next 30 years trying to sell the paintings but he had bought them at a high point and was never able to get a return on his investment.

Walter Greaves met Whistler around 1863 and Whistler took on Greaves and his older brother as studio assistants. The Greaves brothers taught Whistler how to row, he encouraged them to draw and paint. Greaves made many portraits of Whistler including the image shown at right, showing a dandified Whistler on the widow's walk at his house in Lindsey Row, Chelsea. Greaves achieved some level of notoriety and had several exhibitions but fell into disfavor and died in poverty. The painting shown at right is estimated at $30,000 to $50,000.

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Rubens Painting Sells To Raise Money For Princess Diana's Family Home

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

A painting by Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens listed for auction by the family of the late Princess Diana sold on Tuesday at Christie's for 9 million pounds ($13.68 million). The picture "A Commander being armed for Battle," was painted in 1613 or 1614. The bearded man had been identified by some as Emperor Charles V and carried an estimate of 8-12 million pounds ($12-18 million). The painting has been at the Spencer family home, Althorp for more than 200 years. Although it was originally described as being in the "school of Rubens" it has now been identified by noted scholars as being painted by the master himself.

The painting is part of a Spencer collection sell-off of approximately $30 million designed to help preserve the family home. Althorp is undergoing a major restoration and the trustees of the estate decided to sell artwork deemed not integral to the Spencer Collection. Diana's brother Earl Spencer also sold off "King David" by Baroque artist Il Guercino for 5.2 million pounds. Overall the auction raised 42.3 million pounds solidly mid-range against an estimate of 36.9-55.8 million pounds.

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Avedon's Photographs Head To Auction

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

A collection of the photographs of legendary master Richard Avedon will head to auction November 20 at Christie's in Paris. The Avedon Foundation is selling photographs from its archive to raise money to create an endowment to promote the work and legacy of the photographer. The image shown above, "Dovima with Elephants," an over seven-foot-tall image that graced Avedon's New York City Studio, is estimated to sell for $500,000 to $700,000. The total of over 60 photographs is hoped to bring in between $3.7 million and $6 million.

Avedon, who died in 2004 was famous for both his glamorous fashion work starring models like Jean Shrimpton, Veruschka and Twiggy in the 1960s and 1970s as well as for later images of stark portraiture. He was on assignment for the New Yorker when he died at the age of 81. This auction will be the largest auction of Avedon's images. His personal belongings were auctioned off in 2005 around the time his house was sold.

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Art Basel Attracts Abramovich, Kilmer, Millions

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art

The exclusive opening of Art Basel – for the most serious buyers – had the desired effect. The most famous art show in the world attracted the likes of art collector Roman Abramovich (however much it may be at the behest of his squeeze) and fetched some major sales, including $15 million for a sculpture by Pablo Picasso.

So, who joined Abramovich in scratching the art itch ... one that's been hard to scratch since the art market collapsed in 2008? Well, Val Kilmer, Peter Brant and Laurence Graff were among the elite.

Prices haven't returned to 2007 levels, noted art dealer Nicholas Maclean to Bloomberg News, but he added that the top stuff is selling well. This doesn't exactly defy common sense, of course. There are 303 galleries at Art Basel this year, and they're all hoping to ride this wave.

A Christie's International auction in Paris the day before Art Basel started set the tone for the affair. A sculpture by Amedeo Modigliani moved for $53 million, setting a record for the French auction market.

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Art Market: Russian Billionaires Are Back

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The numbers may not have big, but it felt like 2007 all over again during "Russian Week" in London. Russian billionaires descended on the art auction houses and fought fiercely for prized lots. Compared to last year, auction sales nearly doubled, with the Russians spending $86 million to repatriate icons, paintings, porcelain and Faberge items. This follows $18.5 million in Russian art sales by Sotheby's and Christie's in New York back in April.

The most popular pieces were early 20th century modernist works, with the top lot Alexander Yakovlev's "Titi and Naranghe, Daughters of Chief Eki Bondo." It was good for £2.5 million, almost tripling its high-end presale estimate of £900,000.

Sotheby's was the top auction house of London's Russian Week, generating £22.3 million by selling approximately 70 percent of its 615 lots. The result falls within the presale range of £19.3 million to £28 million.

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Unsmoked Churchill Cigar Fetches Thousands

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cigars, Auctions

Sir Winston Churchill memorabilia was good for more than half a million pounds. A collection belonging to Malcolm S. Forbes Jr. went under the gavel at Christie's, with 84 lots finding new homes. One of them was an unsmoked Havana cigar, which sold for £2,125. It soundly beat the auction's presale estimate of £1,500.

Included with the cigar was a note from the prime minister to Christopher Dunn, with whom he was dining: "Sir Winston Churchill... gave me this cigar at Luncheon – Hotel de Paris [Monte Carlo]" 12 April '63."

Forbes developed this collection over 30 years, and it sold for a total of £577,063 ... and it's only the first of three auctions from this private collection. The ultimate total is expected to exceed £1 million.

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May Art Sales to Bring Records and Liquidity

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The Impressionist and Modern Art sales on May 4 and 5, 2010 are likely to confirm a continued climb in art auction pricing. We're now six months or so into the badly needed upswing, and there's plenty of room for optimism. Not only are the presale estimates and sales on the way up, but the number of pieces being resold quickly is on the rise, as well. This means that there's a high degree of liquidity in the art market: collectors can sell easily and without worry (as long as the inventory doesn't suck, in which case there's no hope, of course).

The increase in art market liquidity is due in part to the return of guaranteed minimum pricing, in which the auction houses assume some sales risk for attractive or desirable pieces that they feel can beat the numbers and attract buyers and sellers of other strong works. According to ArtPrice, there are "tens of millions of dollars for major works" committed via guaranteed minimum pricing, indicating that confidence is up.

It's the price guarantees that have led to the arrival of some strong pieces at the early may auctions this year, including pieces from the collections of Mrs Sidney Francis Brody, Raymond and Miriam Klein, Bernard Goldberg and Michael Crichton. Brody's works alone could fetch up to $150 million. The high estimate for Christie's is $300 million, a target that doesn't include the top lot, "Nude, Green Leaves" by Pablo Picasso, which as Jared Paul Stern revealed in a recent column is expected to bring in as much as $90 million. Other artists with eight-figure estimates include Henri Matisse, and Alberto Giacometti.

Don't just look for good news – also a expect a few records to b set. Sotheby's has high hopes for pieces by Salvador Dali and Auguste Rodin.

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Sotheby's and Christie's Place Their Russian Bets

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

The Russians are coming to New York! From April 21, 2010 to April 23, 2010, 600 lots of Russian art will be coming to market. Sotheby's will be auctioning 359 of them, including several by Pavel Tchelitchew, from actress Ruth Ford's collection. Also going under the blog are pieces by Stanislaw Zukowski, Nicolas Kalmakoff and Vladimir Davidovic Baranov-Rossine. Sotheby's is expecting a new auction record for Yuri Ivanovich Pimenov, with "Morning Windows" carrying a presale estimate of $250,000 to $350,000.

At Christie's, look for Konstantin Egorovic Makovskij to cause a stir. According to Artprice, his index gained 853 percent from 1999 to 2009 before losing 72 percent in the art market bust. "In from a stroll" has a presale estimate of $400,000 to $600,000. Makovskij hasn't had a sale above $200,000 since November 2008.

While there's obviously some excitement over the coming Russian sales, it shouldn't be confused with the market enjoyed from 2005 to 2008, when seven-figure values weren't unusual. Moving carefully, Sotheby's and Christie's are offering many works with estimates below $400,000.

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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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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.

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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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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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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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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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