New York's spring auction week, starting May 18, 2026, saw record-breaking sales led by Christie's, which realized over $1.1 billion across two opening night sales. Major estate consignments from Condé Nast owner S.I. Newhouse, MoMA trustee Agnes Gund, dealer Marian Goodman, and financier Robert Mnuchin fueled the market, resulting in 17 new artist auction records.
Sotheby’s Modern Evening Auction on Tuesday night achieved $303.9 million in total sales, with 98% of lots sold, led by Henri Matisse’s *La Chaise lorraine* at $48.4 million—the second-highest price ever for a Matisse painting at auction. Other top lots included Pablo Picasso’s *Arlequin (Buste)* (1909), which sold for $42.6 million, and works by Alberto Giacometti and Vincent van Gogh. However, bidding was often cautious, with few prolonged contests, and the total fell below the presale high estimate of $320.2 million, reflecting a tempered market atmosphere.
A rediscovered portrait of Prince Rupert, long attributed to the studio of Anthony van Dyck and later to Jacob Huysmans, sold for CA$217,250 ($153,000) at Heffel Fine Art Auction House’s Spring Sale on May 21, more than double its low estimate. New research identified the work as by Peter Lely, court painter to King Charles II. The painting had belonged to the Hudson Bay Company for centuries and was part of a court-approved sale of the company’s collection following its 2024 bankruptcy. The 80-lot sale also saw a record for E.J. Hughes’s "Coastal Boats Near Sidney, BC" (1948), which sold for CA$5.7 million ($4.1 million), and strong results for Group of Seven artists Arthur Lismer, A.J. Casson, and Lawren Harris.