Art News. Vasari Codex

trending_up market schedule Nov 19, 2025 visibility 7 link 2 artists, 2 galleries

ripleys buys maurizio cattelan gold toilet sothebys 1234762386

Ripley’s Believe It or Not! has been revealed as the buyer of Maurizio Cattelan’s 18-karat gold toilet sculpture “America” (2016), which sold for $12.1 million at Sotheby’s “Now & Contemporary” auction on November 18, 2025. The work, consigned by billionaire collector and Mets owner Steve Cohen, hammered at $10 million after a single bid, just above the value of its raw gold. Sotheby’s had previously only identified the buyer as a “Famous American Brand.” Ripley’s announced the acquisition on Instagram, calling it the most valuable object in its collection and noting plans for public display, possibly allowing visitors to sit on the fully functional toilet.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 19, 2025 visibility 9 link 3 artists, 2 galleries

maurizio cattelan america sothebys sale toilet 12 million 1234762122

Maurizio Cattelan's 18-karat gold toilet, titled *America* (2016), sold for $12.1 million at Sotheby's “The Now & Contemporary” sale on Tuesday evening, falling short of the artist's auction record. The work, owned by New York Mets owner Steve Cohen, hammered at $10 million—just above the value of its gold content—after a single bid. It was installed in a bathroom at Sotheby's Breuer Building for viewing but not use. The consignor was revealed to be Cohen, who acquired the piece from Marian Goodman Gallery in 2017. The sale accepted cryptocurrency, and the work did not carry a guarantee.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 7, 2025 visibility 11 link 13 artists, 2 galleries

steve cohen consignor maurizio cattelan golden toilet sothebys 1234760545

Top 200 Collector Steven A. Cohen has been revealed as the consignor of Maurizio Cattelan's golden toilet sculpture, *America* (2016), which will be auctioned at Sotheby's on November 18. The work, made of 18-karat gold and weighing over 100 kilograms, was purchased from Marian Goodman Gallery in 2017. It will be displayed in a bathroom at Sotheby's Breuer Building before the sale, with a starting bid expected around $10 million based on the price of its weight in gold. The piece has a notable history: one version was exhibited at the Guggenheim Museum, offered to the Trump White House as a loan alternative to a van Gogh painting, and another was stolen from Blenheim Palace in 2019, making Cohen's the only extant version.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 3, 2025 visibility 9 link 4 artists, 1 gallery

sothebys to sell cattelans golden toilet inside the studio museum in harlems new building and more morning links for october 31 2025 1234759722

Sotheby's will auction Maurizio Cattelan's 18-karat solid gold toilet, titled "America" (2016), during its marquee New York sales next month. The 100-kilogram work will be installed in a bathroom at the Breuer Building, Sotheby's new headquarters, with public viewing beginning November 8 and the auction on November 18. The starting bid will be set by the work's weight in gold, around $10 million. Separately, the article examines shifting boundaries in artist representation, using Tom Sachs as an example of a fine artist who worked with a PR agency (The Lede Company) for brand collaborations while his gallery Thaddaeus Ropac handled his fine art, raising questions about where a gallery's role ends and an agency's begins.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Oct 31, 2025 visibility 10 link 4 artists, 2 galleries

maurizio cattelan golden toilet sothebys auction 1234759561

Sotheby's is auctioning Maurizio Cattelan's solid gold toilet, titled "America" (2016), during its November evening sale at the Breuer Building in New York. The 18-karat, 100-kilogram functional toilet will be on view from November 8, though visitors will not be allowed to use it. The starting bid will be determined by the work's weight in gold, estimated around $10 million. The piece was previously exhibited at the Guggenheim Museum in 2016, where over 100,000 visitors used it, and at Blenheim Palace in the UK, where it was infamously stolen in a smash-and-grab heist and never recovered. Sotheby's will accept cryptocurrency for the sale, following the precedent set by Cattelan's banana artwork last year.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 20, 2025 visibility 9 link 8 artists, 2 galleries

maurizio cattelan america gold toilet auction 2707156

Maurizio Cattelan's 18-karat gold toilet sculpture, *America* (2016), sold at Sotheby's New York for $12.1 million to Ripley's Believe It or Not!, the entertainment franchise known for oddities. The work, consigned by hedge-fund manager Steve Cohen, was auctioned from the Breuer Building and drew long viewing lines. Despite a playful bidding process led by auctioneer Phyllis Kao, the final price fell short of Cattelan's auction record of $17.2 million set by *Him* (2001) at Christie's in 2016.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Mar 4, 2026 visibility 21 link 3 artists, 5 galleries

anicka yi pace future ai interview 1234775593

Conceptual artist Anicka Yi has joined Pace Gallery, where she will be represented in partnership with Gladstone Gallery, 47 Canal, and Esther Schipper. Known for her research-heavy practice that utilizes scents, bacteria, and robotics, Yi cited Pace CEO Marc Glimcher’s background in biology and the gallery's history with light and space pioneers as primary reasons for the move. Her work will be featured in the New Museum’s upcoming expansion inaugural exhibition, "New Humans: Memories of the Future."

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule May 20, 2025 visibility 8 link 7 artists, 2 galleries

estate of susan rothenberg who fused symbolism with abstraction joins hauser wirth 1234742725

Hauser & Wirth, the mega-gallery with locations across three continents, has announced its representation of the estate of Susan Rothenberg, the influential painter who died in 2020. Rothenberg, known for her psychologically charged works featuring horses, disembodied limbs, and uncanny landscapes, was previously represented by Sperone Westwater gallery from 1987 until her death. The gallery will debut Rothenberg's work at Art Basel in June 2025, followed by her first solo exhibition with Hauser & Wirth in New York in September 2025.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Feb 23, 2026 visibility 18 link 8 artists, 3 galleries

performance art new collectors 2747279

The commercial market for performance art is undergoing a significant shift in value and sophistication. While performance has been sellable for decades through archival editions and documentation—a model pioneered by figures like Marina Abramović and dealer Sean Kelly—newer methods include oral contracts for 'live' works and high-stakes secondary market sales. Recent examples, such as Hauser & Wirth offering a Felix Gonzalez-Torres performance piece with an eight-figure price tag, signal that the medium is moving from a niche interest into a high-value asset class.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Dec 8, 2025 visibility 12 link 8 artists, 2 galleries

art basel digital art 2724446

Art Basel Miami Beach 2025 launched a new digital art section called Zero 10, featuring works like Beeple's robotic dogs with billionaire heads and Tyler Hobbs' generative art. The fair aimed to attract tech-sector buyers, with sales including IX Shells' interactive video installation for $140,000 and Jack Butcher's pay-what-you-wish installation drawing hundreds of new collectors. The section had surprisingly few screens, emphasizing conceptual engagement over spectacle.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule May 16, 2025 visibility 9 link 20 artists, 5 galleries

artist made furniture 2639835

This article explores the growing trend of artist-made furniture, which blurs the line between functional design and fine art. It highlights how artists like Salvador Dalí, Isamu Noguchi, Donald Judd, Tracey Emin, and the duo Les Lalanne have created pieces that invite physical interaction—such as sitting or touching—while retaining high art status. Gallerist Massimo de Carlo notes that collectors are drawn to this merging of art and life, and that such works offer both conceptual depth and investment value. The article also notes market disparities, with editions of furniture costing far less than unique works, though some pieces, like a François-Xavier Lalanne rhinoceros desk, have sold for nearly $20 million at auction.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Sep 10, 2025 visibility 13 link 17 artists, 1 gallery

cristin tierney marks 15 years tribeca 1234750653

Cristin Tierney, a seasoned art dealer, has opened a new gallery space in New York's Tribeca district, marking her fourth relocation in fifteen years. The inaugural exhibition, titled “Fifteen,” is a group show featuring over 30 artists who have shaped the gallery's identity, including Dread Scott, Mary Lucier, Judy Pfaff, and Shaun Leonardo. Tierney's move comes amid widespread reports of gallery closures, positioning her expansion as a strategic bet on the viability of midsize, independent dealers. The gallery's model combines a conceptual front-room program with secondary-market sales, a practice Tierney likens to the legacy of Leo Castelli.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Jun 19, 2025 visibility 11 link 4 artists, 3 galleries

young collector habits 2658637

Maurice Mielcarek, a 43-year-old Zurich-based collector, exemplifies a new generation of younger art buyers who prioritize lasting engagement over speculation. At Zurich Art Weekend, he introduced friends to New York artist Travis Boyer, whose velvet paintings Mielcarek has collected for two years. This cohort, mostly in their 30s and 40s, takes a slower, research-driven approach to collecting, often building relationships with artists and galleries before purchasing. They focus on discovery, conceptual works, and supporting artists' visions beyond mere acquisition.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Apr 27, 2026 visibility 19 link 13 artists, 4 galleries

The Box Shutters in Los Angeles After Nearly Two Decades

The Box, a pioneering Los Angeles gallery known for its nonprofit-style support of experimental and performance art, has announced its closure after nearly two decades. Founded in 2007 by Mara McCarthy, the gallery’s final exhibition featured late California painter Wally Hedrick, and a closing event will include a fashion show by Johanna Went. Mara McCarthy cited the shifting market for her father Paul McCarthy’s work and the loss of family homes in the Eaton Fire as factors behind the decision.

newspaper Artforum open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Dec 9, 2025 visibility 18 link 18 artists

most expensive female artists 817277

Artnet News has published a list of the ten most expensive female artists at auction, based on data from the Artnet Price Database. The article highlights recent record-breaking sales, including Frida Kahlo's *El Sueño (La Cama)* (1940), which sold for $54.7 million at Sotheby's, and Marlene Dumas's *Miss January* (1997), which realized $13.6 million at Christie's, making Dumas the most expensive living woman artist. The list features artists such as Rosemarie Trockel, Bridget Riley, Cindy Sherman, Vija Celmins, and Cady Noland, with auction records ranging from $4.9 million to $9.7 million.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule May 9, 2026 source 2 sources visibility 4 link 9 artists, 6 galleries

Ed Ruscha | Billy (1968) | Art & Prints

Ed Ruscha's 1968 exhibition catalogue 'Billy', designed for a show of works by his friend Billy Al Bengston, is being offered for sale. The catalogue features a flocked sandpaper cover, satin ribbon bookmark, and machine screw and hex nut binding, and was published by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art for an exhibition that traveled to the Corcoran Gallery of Art and the Vancouver Art Gallery. The work is listed on an art marketplace platform with a price of €62,600, and the listing includes details about its condition, provenance, and the artist's broader career.

newspaper Artsy open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 13, 2025 visibility 11 link 6 artists, 2 galleries

The art world's most infamous toilet is heading to New York auction for US$10m – and the starting bid moves with gold

Maurizio Cattelan's solid-gold toilet sculpture, *America* (2016), will be auctioned at Sotheby's New York on 18 November 2025 as part of the Now & Contemporary Evening Auction. The work, weighing 223 pounds of 18-karat gold, has a raw material value of around US$10.2 million based on current gold prices. In a first for auction history, the starting bid will fluctuate with live gold prices until bidding begins. The sculpture was previously installed at the Guggenheim Museum, where over 100,000 visitors used it, and later made headlines when the Guggenheim offered it to the Trump White House as a loan alternative to a Van Gogh painting. One edition was stolen and never recovered, making this the only surviving example.

newspaper TheValue.com open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Apr 9, 2026 visibility 11 link 1 artist

Italian Winemaker Ornellaia Reveals Marina Abramović’s Designs for Its 2023 Vintages

Marina Abramović has collaborated with the Italian winemaker Ornellaia to design labels for its 2023 vintage as part of the annual Vendemmia d’Artista project. The designs range from self-portrait drawings and photographs featuring grapes to a conceptual 9-liter bottle that instructs the drinker to listen to Nino Rota’s theme from La Dolce Vita while consuming the wine. A selection of these limited-edition bottles will be auctioned at Bonhams in June to raise funds for the Guggenheim Museum.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Oct 28, 2025 visibility 16 link 13 artists, 2 galleries

altman siegel closes gallery san francisco 1234757474

Altman Siegel, a key gallery in San Francisco's art scene, will close in November 2025 after 16 years. Founder Claudia Altman-Siegel attributed the closure to a challenging market for mid-size galleries, stating it became too difficult to scale in the current climate. The gallery's final show is a solo exhibition by Shinpei Kusanagi, ending November 22. Its roster included artists such as Simon Denny, Lynn Hershman Leeson, Trevor Paglen, and others. The closure follows a trend of galleries shutting down or scaling back, including Blum and LA Louver in Los Angeles, and Clearing and Venus Over Manhattan in New York.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Oct 16, 2025 visibility 9 link 1 artist, 1 gallery

gagosian first to announce it sold out at frieze london 1234757231

Gagosian became the first exhibitor at Frieze London to announce a complete sellout of its booth, featuring a solo presentation of works by Los Angeles artist Lauren Halsey. The booth included pieces from Halsey's 2025 untitled series of polymer-modified gypsum and stain on wood, as well as a six-foot-tall plaza sign sculpture titled 'LODA PLAZA (2025)'. Gagosian director Antwaun Sargent confirmed that the works were placed with both institutions and serious long-term collectors in the U.S. and Europe.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule May 15, 2025 visibility 11 link 7 artists

met receives photography collection walter artur 1234742347

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has received a promised gift of more than 6,500 photographic works from German American collector Artur Walther and the Walther Family Foundation. The collection spans 19th-century vernacular photography to contemporary video, with strengths in African studio photography, German post-war photography, Chinese conceptual art, and early vernacular images. Artists represented include Malick Sidibé, Zanele Muholi, Ai Weiwei, Thomas Struth, and Bernd and Hilla Becher. A selection will debut when the Michael C. Rockefeller Wing reopens this month, with further displays planned for the Oscar L. Tang and H.M. Agnes Hsu-Tang Wing opening in 2030.

newspaper ARTnews open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Jul 16, 2025 visibility 9 link 7 artists

rei kawakubo comme des garcons piasa auction 2667989

A Japanese collector, Hiroaki Narita, is auctioning his extensive collection of Rei Kawakubo's designs for Comme des Garçons at the French auction house Piasa on October 1, during Paris Fashion Week. The sale includes over 500 lots of garments and accessories dating from 1969 to 1999, with estimates ranging from €150 to €2,000. The collection spans Kawakubo's most iconic collections, including Pirates (1981), Body Meets Dress, Dress Meets Body (1997), and Kaleidoscope (1996), showcasing her avant-garde, deconstructed aesthetic.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 17, 2025 visibility 8 link 4 artists, 1 gallery

david shrigley selling old rope 2713134

British artist David Shrigley has created "Exhibition of Old Rope," a work consisting of 10 tons of salvaged rope arranged on the floor of Stephen Friedman Gallery in London, priced at £1 million ($1.3 million). Shrigley and assistants spent months collecting discarded rope from beaches, cruise ships, climbing schools, tree surgeons, and wind farms, then cleaned and assembled it into a large pile. The work plays on the English idiom "money for old rope," which originally referred to the resale value of used ship rope in early 19th-century Britain.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Mar 4, 2026 visibility 16 link 4 artists, 3 galleries

Pace Gallery announces representation of Korean conceptual artist Anicka Yi.

Pace Gallery has announced the representation of Korean-born, New York-based conceptual artist Anicka Yi, who joins the gallery's roster while maintaining her existing relationships with Gladstone Gallery, 47 Canal, and Esther Schipper. Yi will debut a new painting at Pace’s Art Basel Hong Kong booth this month, followed by a solo exhibition in New York in 2027 and upcoming projects at the New Museum and Storm King Art Center.

newspaper Artsy open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule May 5, 2025 visibility 7 link 4 artists, 1 gallery

MoMA acquires works featured in monumental Adam Pendleton installation

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has acquired the 35 individual paintings, drawings, and video works that comprised Adam Pendleton's monumental installation *Who Is Queen?* (2019-21), which was on view in the museum's atrium from 2021 to 2022. The installation explored Pendleton's conceptual framework of "Black Dada," a term he first outlined in his *Black Dada Manifesto* (2008), and included works such as *Notes on the Robert E. Lee Monument, Richmond VA (Figure)* (2021), a film reflecting on the 2020 racial justice protests. The acquisition marks a significant institutional commitment to Pendleton's practice, which continues to evolve in his current exhibition at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, DC.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Dec 1, 2025 visibility 14 link 8 artists, 4 galleries

A time portal in 11 characters: On Kawara's "NOV. 27, 1984" sells for US$1.1m at Bonhams Hong Kong

On November 27, 2025, On Kawara's date painting "NOV. 27, 1984" from his Today series sold for HK$8.5 million (US$1.1 million) at Bonhams' Modern and Contemporary Art Sale in Hong Kong, becoming the top lot of the auction. The work, executed exactly 41 years earlier on November 27, 1984, features the date in white sans-serif lettering on a dark canvas and was acquired by a client represented by Bonhams specialist Ryo Wakabayashi, likely destined for a private collection in Japan.

newspaper TheValue.com open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Jun 16, 2025 visibility 12 link 15 artists, 1 gallery

National Gallery of Canada receives gift of 61 works valued at $16.8m

Canadian collector and businessman Bob Rennie has donated 61 works valued at C$22.8 million ($16.8 million) to the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) in Ottawa. The gift, which took 18 months to plan, includes pieces by Yinka Shonibare, Mona Hatoum, Rodney Graham, Ai Weiwei, and others. It surpasses Rennie’s previous record donation of C$13 million in 2017 and brings his total contributions to the NGC to over C$35 million, comprising more than 260 works since 2012. Rennie, a longtime patron of the National Gallery of Canada Foundation, emphasized his approach of collecting artists in depth rather than for momentary sensation.

newspaper The Art Newspaper open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Feb 4, 2026 visibility 4 link 4 artists

john alvin movie poster archive sale 2742481

The estate of movie poster artist John Alvin is seeking a single buyer for his entire archive of over 1,000 pieces, including original posters, sketches, and illustrations from the 1970s through the 1990s. The collection, stewarded by his widow Andrea Alvin since his death in 2008, features iconic work for films like E.T., The Lion King, and Blade Runner.

newspaper Artnet News open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 18, 2025 source 3 sources visibility 14 link 22 artists

In major auction night, rare Klimt painting smashes records at $236.4 million

Sotheby's held its first sale at its new US headquarters in New York, where Gustav Klimt's "Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" sold for $236.4 million, becoming the most valuable work of modern art ever sold at auction and the most expensive artwork ever sold by Sotheby's globally. The record-breaking 20-minute bidding war also saw strong results for works by Edvard Munch ($35.1 million) and a Klimt landscape ($86 million), while the evening's total reached $706 million. However, two top lots by Kerry James Marshall and Barkley L. Hendricks failed to sell, and Maurizio Cattelan's gold toilet "America" drew only a single bid from Ripley's Believe It or Not! for $12.1 million.

newspaper CNN open_in_new Read original

trending_up market schedule Nov 25, 2025 visibility 13 link 4 artists

The Surreal Economics of the Contemporary-Art Market

A conceptual artwork titled "Comedian" by Maurizio Cattelan, consisting of a banana duct-taped to a wall, sold at auction for over $6 million to billionaire Justin Sun. This sale occurred amid widespread speculation that the contemporary-art market has peaked, with global art sales dropping 12% in 2024. However, a painting by Marlene Dumas defied the trend, fetching $13.6 million and setting a record for a living female artist. The article explores the bewildering economics of the art market, featuring insights from economist Canice Prendergast and journalist Bianca Bosker, who describe a market where prices seem divorced from traditional logic.

newspaper The University of Chicago Booth School of Business open_in_new Read original