another management shake up at sothebys asia and a rundown of the latest in asias art world

Sotheby's Asia faces another leadership shake-up as Elaine Holt departs her role as chairman of modern and contemporary art in Asia after just one year. Jasmine Prasetio, Sotheby's managing director for Southeast Asia, will relocate to Hong Kong to serve as interim chair. Meanwhile, European galleries Meyer Riegger and Galerie Jocelyn Wolff are partnering to open a new space in Seoul called Meyer Riegger Wolff, led by Gala Musi, with an inaugural show during Frieze Seoul. Design Miami will make its Asian debut in Seoul, and London-based artist Firenze Lai has joined White Cube's roster. In Taiwan, the Taichung Green Museumbrary, designed by SANAA, is set to open in December, and the Gwangju Biennale Foundation has appointed Youn Bummo as its new president.

these printers share stories of helping artists bring their visions to life

Artnet Auctions' Premier Prints and Multiples: Summer Edition sale, open for bidding through April 3, 2025, features iconic works on paper by artists such as Jonas Wood and Lynda Benglis. The article highlights the collaborative process between artists and printers, with firsthand accounts from Emmett Walsh of Ollin Editions and a publisher who worked with Lynda Benglis on a tapestry based on her painting *Rajesh in Rajasthan* (2012–2016). Walsh describes producing Wood's 112-color silkscreen *Kitchen Interior* (2022) over 20 months, while the other publisher recounts a three-year search for weavers to create Benglis's detailed rug.

price check art basel basel 2025

Art Basel in Basel has concluded, with galleries reporting hundreds of sales despite low expectations set by lackluster New York auction results. Dealers shared prices ranging from $1 million to $17 million, with top sales including David Hockney's *Mid November Tunnel* (2006) at Annely Juda Fine Art ($13M–$17M), a Ruth Asawa sculpture at David Zwirner ($9.5M), and a Gerhard Richter painting at David Zwirner ($6.8M). Other notable transactions include works by Keith Haring, Mark Bradford, Georg Baselitz, and George Condo, though many galleries provided only price ranges and withheld exact titles or mediums.

man ray rediscovered

A rediscovered watercolor sketch by Man Ray, created in 1913 when he was in his early twenties, has resurfaced after decades in an attic and sold for £18,000 ($24,000) at Dreweatts auction house in Newbury, England, on July 10. The work, titled *Nude Playing Musical Instrument [Study for “Tapestry Painting”]*, is a preparatory study for a lost larger oil-on-linen tapestry and offers rare insight into the artist's pivotal transition from traditional painting to avant-garde experimentation inspired by European modernism encountered at the 1913 Armory Show.

rothschild vienna mahzor prayer book auction

The Rothschild Vienna Mahzor, a 15th-century illuminated Hebrew prayer book, sold for $6.4 million at a Sotheby's auction on February 5. The sale followed the manuscript's recent restitution to the descendants of Alphonse von Rothschild, from whom it was seized by the Nazis in 1938.

King Arthur Manuscript Hidden in a Private Collection for 700 Years Is Coming to Auction

A 13th-century illuminated manuscript known as the Clermont-Tonnerre Grail, which has been hidden in a private collection for 700 years, will be offered at Christie’s Valuable Books and Manuscripts auction in July. The manuscript, devoted to the quest for the Holy Grail, Merlin, and King Arthur, is estimated at £1.5 million–£2 million ($2 million–$2.6 million). It is one of only three such manuscripts in private hands, with around 200 held by institutions.

One of the Rarest King Arthur Manuscripts Could Fetch Millions at Auction

Christie’s will auction the Clermont-Tonnerre Grail, a rare illuminated manuscript from the Lancelot-Grail Cycle (circa 1300), on July 8 at its Valuable Books and Manuscripts sale in London. Expected to fetch £1.5 million–£2 million ($2 million–$2.6 million), the artifact has remained in private hands for 700 years and is one of only three complete Vulgate Cycle manuscripts in private ownership. The 126 illustrations are attributed to the Master of the Liége Apocalypse, and the manuscript boasts a distinguished provenance including French nobility and British baron Thomas Phillipps.

A Landmark Benjamin Franklin Collection Is Hitting the Auction Block

A landmark collection of Benjamin Franklin memorabilia assembled by sports and entertainment mogul Jay Snider is heading to Sotheby’s New York on June 24. The collection includes over 150 items—books, broadsides, letters, and manuscripts—tracing Franklin’s career from printer to scientist to diplomat. Highlights include a 1758 letter to Joseph Galloway (estimated $70,000–$100,000), a 1778 letter from George Washington introducing the Marquis de Lafayette (which sold for over $1 million in January), and a bound volume of Franklin’s electrical experiments ($75,000–$125,000). The full catalogue is valued at $3 million to $4.5 million, and 40 artifacts will be displayed at the Library Company of Philadelphia from May 5 to 7.

Arthurian manuscript could make magic at Christie's London

A rare medieval manuscript containing early versions of the King Arthur, Merlin, and Holy Grail myths will be auctioned at Christie’s London on 8 July with an estimate of £1.5m–£2m. Known as the Clermont-Tonnerre Grail, the vellum manuscript (circa 1290–1310) features gold leaf illumination and 126 miniature illustrations by the Master of the Liège Apocalypse. It includes texts from the Old French Lancelot-Grail cycle and has a distinguished provenance, having belonged to figures such as Sir Thomas Phillipps and the comte de Clermont-Tonnerre.

From the Renaissance to the Second Empire: Three Sales in Paris

De la Renaissance au Second Empire : trois ventes à Paris

Three upcoming auctions in Paris will feature a diverse range of art and objects from the Renaissance to the Second Empire. A highlight is a rare 16th-century enameled glass cup, bearing a Latin verse from Psalm 31 and heraldic arms, to be sold by Daguerre at Drouot on April 3.