frieze los angeles art world grief hope 1234773976

The Los Angeles art scene is navigating a complex recovery as it prepares for Frieze Los Angeles 2026. The city is grappling with the lingering trauma of devastating wildfires that destroyed significant private collections, alongside economic instability caused by massive layoffs in the entertainment industry and recent political unrest. This combination of environmental and financial crises has led to a notable market downturn, resulting in the closure of several high-profile galleries including Blum, Tanya Bonakdar, and Sean Kelly.

stop making sense 2025 art market analysis 1234767291

The article analyzes the chaotic and contradictory state of the global art market in 2025, a year marked by extreme volatility following President Donald Trump's return to office. Key events include strong sales at Frieze Los Angeles in February, a record $13.8 million sale of a painting by M.F. Husain at Christie's, and a sharp downturn after Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on major trading partners. Major auctions in May fell far short of expectations, with only $837.5 million hammered against estimates of up to $1.6 billion. Meanwhile, Art Basel expanded with a new Qatar fair, but sales at Art Basel Switzerland dropped over 35% from 2024. The year also saw a wave of gallery closures, including the sunsetting of Blum & Poe.

paint drippings art industry news mar 9 2751986

The art market is gearing up for a high-stakes spring season with major estate collections from S.I. Newhouse and Robert Mnuchin slated for auction at Christie’s and Sotheby’s, collectively valued at over half a billion dollars. Meanwhile, London’s spring marquee sales showed strong momentum, with Christie’s and Sotheby’s reporting significant year-over-year increases in their evening sale totals, despite a more modest performance from Phillips.

Marian Goodman’s Prized $65 Million Collection Lands at Christie’s

Christie’s has announced the sale of the private collection of the late legendary art dealer Marian Goodman, who passed away in January at age 97. Estimated to bring in approximately $65 million, the collection is headlined by a group of significant works by Gerhard Richter, an artist Goodman championed for four decades. The centerpiece of the auction is Richter’s 1982 painting "Kerze (Candle)," which carries a high estimate of $50 million and will lead a series of dedicated sales in New York this May.

work of the week david hockney english garden 2748979

David Hockney’s 1965 painting 'English Garden' is returning to the auction block at Sotheby’s London with an estimate of £2.5 million to £3.5 million ($3.4 million to $4.7 million). Painted while Hockney was teaching at the University of Colorado, Boulder, the work is recognized as his first English landscape and has been held in a private collection for nearly thirty years. It was last sold at auction in 1997 for just £89,500.

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.

institut restellinis amedeo modigliani catalogue raisonne 1234776379

Marc Restellini’s Institut Restellini is set to release a definitive six-volume catalogue raisonné for Amedeo Modigliani after four decades of research. The publication, which includes 100 newly authenticated works, utilizes a rigorous methodology combining advanced scientific analysis—such as spectrometry and carbon-14 dating—with traditional stylistic evaluation and archival documentation. To mark the launch, Pace Gallery will host events in London and New York in April.

emmi whitehorse white cube gallery representation 1234775774

White Cube has announced the representation of Navajo artist Emmi Whitehorse, who will be represented alongside her New York gallery, Garth Greenan. The partnership follows Whitehorse’s successful solo exhibition at White Cube’s Paris space and her inclusion in the 2024 Venice Biennale. The gallery plans to debut new work, including the painting "Father Sky meets Mother Earth," at its Art Basel Hong Kong booth later this month.

art sg 2026 sales report 1234771224

ART SG concluded its 2026 edition at Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands with steady sales and a reported attendance of 43,000 visitors. While the fair lacked the million-dollar trophy sales seen in previous years, blue-chip galleries like Thaddaeus Ropac and White Cube reported significant transactions, including a £475,000 Raqib Shaw painting and a sell-out presentation of Lee Bae works by Johyun Gallery totaling $2.76 million. The event also featured a strategic partnership with S.E.A. Focus, integrating the boutique fair into the main hall to highlight regional talent.

Louise Nevelson Sculpture at Long Island Synagogue for Sale

louise nevelson sculpture long island synagogue for sale 1234773933

Temple Beth El, a synagogue in Great Neck, New York, has announced the sale of a monumental 55-foot-long Louise Nevelson sculpture titled "The White Flame of the Six Million." Commissioned in the 1960s as a Holocaust memorial and functional Torah ark, the white-painted wood installation has served as the centerpiece of the congregation's sanctuary for over 50 years. Due to dwindling membership and a decision to sell the synagogue property, the congregation is seeking a new home for the massive work.

kohler announces 2026 residency industry moves 1234762363

The ARTnews industry moves column for November 19, 2025 reports several gallery and institutional changes: Ortuzar partners with the Claire Falkenstein Foundation for a multi-year initiative including a booth at Art Basel Miami Beach and a 2026 exhibition at the San Diego Museum of Art; Jessica Silverman now co-represents GaHee Park with Perrotin; Gurr Johns appoints Robert Goff as president of private sales and Tabor Story as director of private sales; Tara Downs adds Diné/Tlingit artist Nizhonniya Austin to its roster; Kohler Arts/Industry announces its 2026 residency cohort of 12 artists; Upsilon Gallery names Camilla Previ managing director in Milan. The column also highlights the record-breaking $236.4 million sale of Gustav Klimt's 'Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer' at Sotheby's, the highest price for any modern artwork at auction.

abu dhabi art 2025 scene frieze sales 1234763435

Abu Dhabi Art (ADA) held its final edition at Manarat Al Saadiyat before transitioning into a Frieze franchise in November 2025. The fair featured 53 new galleries, a Focus sector highlighting art scenes from Nigeria, Turkey, and South Asia, and a new Emerge section offering discounted booth prices for works under $3,000 to attract emerging collectors. The shift comes as Abu Dhabi’s cultural landscape moves beyond its iconic Saadiyat Island museums—Louvre Abu Dhabi, Zayed National Museum, and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi—toward more grassroots ventures like the MiZa warehouse district, which hosts experimental spaces such as MamarLab and Iris Projects. Mega-gallery Pace returned after a 14-year absence, citing renewed energy in the Gulf market.

sothebys newly relocated to the breuer building reintroduces itself to new york 1234760682

Sotheby's has relocated its New York headquarters to Marcel Breuer's iconic Brutalist building on Madison Avenue, formerly home to the Whitney Museum, the Met Breuer, and a Frick Collection outpost. After a renovation by Herzog & de Meuron that restored original gallery proportions and upgraded infrastructure, the auction house is inaugurating the space with a series of exhibitions featuring three major single-owner collections—Leonard A. Lauder, Cindy and Jay Pritzker, and Exquisite Corpus—estimated at over a billion dollars. Highlights include Gustav Klimts from the Lauder trove, a Van Gogh still life from the Pritzker collection, a Frida Kahlo painting expected to set a record for a woman artist, and a Basquiat work in the contemporary evening sale.

gagosian reunites with richard diebenkorn 1234757979

Gagosian has announced representation of the late American painter Richard Diebenkorn (1922–1993), marking the artist's return to the gallery more than thirty years after his final solo exhibition there during his lifetime. To celebrate, the gallery will mount a career-spanning exhibition at its Madison Avenue flagship opening November 8, curated by Jasper Sharp in collaboration with the Richard Diebenkorn Foundation. The show will feature works from every period of Diebenkorn's six-decade career, including early California landscapes, wartime watercolors, and the celebrated Ocean Park abstractions, with highlights such as a 1943 watercolor, a monumental 1960 canvas, and late works on paper.

sothebys to host major sale in abu dhabi larry gagosian talks discreet art dealing curator flees thailand over arrest fear and more morning links for september 25 2025 1234753625

Sotheby's will host a landmark exhibition in Abu Dhabi on October 1-2, 2025, at the Bassam Freiha Art Foundation, showcasing masterworks by Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Frida Kahlo, Edvard Munch, René Magritte, and Camille Pissarro, collectively valued at $150 million. This marks the first public fine art exhibition ever staged by Sotheby's in Abu Dhabi and the most valuable presentation the auction house has held in the Middle East. Separately, Larry Gagosian discussed the art market recession at Puck's Art of Influence conference, noting that private sales are rising as collectors shy away from auction houses. Other news includes controversy over Cai Guo-Qiang's performance in Tibet, a curator fleeing Thailand over arrest fears, and declining sales at Sydney Contemporary.

middle east art fair race doha dubai and abu dhabi art basel 1234744406

Art Basel has announced a surprise deal to launch a new art fair in Qatar next year, partnering with Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) and QC+, a subsidiary of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund and commercial arm of Qatar Museums. The fair will debut with around 50 galleries in Doha, intentionally smaller than Basel's other fairs, with a distinct character aimed at building a long-term, sustainable event. The deal comes after rumors that Basel might take over Abu Dhabi Art, and as the region's art scene intensifies, with Art Dubai recently poaching Basel's global head of gallery relations Dunja Gottwies as its new director.

Christie’s to sell an almost unknown Van Gogh double-sided drawing

A previously obscure double-sided drawing by Vincent van Gogh, created in the final weeks of his life, will be auctioned by Christie's in Paris. The sheet features a study of female pea pickers on one side and a landscape on the other, complete with color notations indicating Van Gogh's intention to develop them into paintings. The work has been authenticated by the Van Gogh Museum and carries an estimate of €100,000-€150,000.

olivia barrett chateau shatto 2749305

Olivia Barrett, co-founder of the Los Angeles gallery Château Shatto, is pivoting her business strategy to navigate a cooling art market and a post-boom landscape in Southern California. After moving to the Melrose Hill art corridor, Barrett is shifting away from the high-velocity art fair model to focus on a more curated, historical program. This includes integrating 20th-century estates and secondary-market works from artists like Alice Rahon and Emily Kam Kngwarray alongside contemporary voices like Aria Dean.

simon de pury art market confidence 2720560

The article reports on the upcoming Art Basel in Miami Beach and the improved mood in the art market, driven by strong auction results. Sotheby's emerged as the clear winner over Christie's in the fall 2024 auctions, achieving over $2.2 billion in total sales across Sotheby's, Christie's, and Phillips. Key consignments included the Leonard Lauder Collection, featuring a record-making Klimt, a Frida Kahlo that became the highest-selling work by a woman artist, and Maurizio Cattelan's golden toilet. The article credits Sotheby's move into the Breuer building—formerly home to the Whitney, the Met, and the Frick—for enhancing the presentation and aura of the previews.

sperone westwater gallery winding down 2712272

Sperone Westwater, the venerable New York gallery that celebrated its 50th anniversary two months ago, will close as an entity on December 31, 2025. Co-founders Angela Westwater and Gian Enzo Sperone have decided to pursue separate endeavors, affecting 28 artists and estates. The gallery, known for representing legends like Bruce Nauman and David Lynch, will continue its current Richard Long show through December 13 and attend Art Basel Miami Beach as planned. The closure follows months of rumors and comes as both partners are in their 80s.

Jennifer Gilbert Consigns Blue-Chip Works to Sotheby’s to Fund Detroit Arts Space

Philanthropist Jennifer Gilbert is consigning a selection of blue-chip postwar artworks to Sotheby’s this spring to fund Lumana, a new arts nonprofit in Detroit. The auction highlights include Joan Mitchell’s 'Loom II', estimated at $5 million to $7 million, and a significant target-style painting by Kenneth Noland that could set a new auction record for the artist. The collection also features works by George Rickey and Harry Bertoia, emphasizing a cohesive blend of midcentury abstraction and design.

martha diamond estate thaddaeus ropac 1234778593

Thaddaeus Ropac has announced global representation of the Martha Diamond Trust in collaboration with David Kordansky Gallery. The late New York painter, who passed away in 2023, is known for her expressive, gestural cityscapes of Manhattan that balance abstraction and figuration. The partnership aims to elevate Diamond’s international profile, beginning with her first European museum survey at the Sara Hildén Art Museum in Finland in 2026, followed by a solo exhibition at Ropac’s Paris gallery in 2027.

jack shainman esther schipper victoria miro olney gleason roster 1234771271

This article from ARTnews reports on recent industry moves in the art world, including gallery roster additions and appointments. Jack Shainman Gallery added Brooklyn-based interdisciplinary artist Donyel Ivy-Royal, Esther Schipper now represents Tuan Andrew Nguyen in collaboration with James Cohan, Emalin took on Ghanaian artist Jonathan Okoronkwo, and Victoria Miro and Olney Gleason will jointly represent Emil Sands. Additionally, the Bass Museum of Art appointed Jasa McKenzie as associate curator. The piece also highlights a record-breaking $84.1 million sale of William I. Koch's Western art collection at Christie's, which set five new artist records, including Frederic Remington's reset twice.

jean michel basquaits 45 m crowns peso neto to headline sothebys fall auctions in new york 1234756255

Sotheby's will offer Jean-Michel Basquiat's 1981 painting *Crowns (Peso Neto)* as the headline lot of its contemporary evening sale in New York this fall, carrying a high estimate of $45 million. The work, which has never been auctioned before, debuted at Basquiat's landmark 1982 solo show at Annina Nosei Gallery and later appeared at Documenta 7. It will be exhibited in London during Frieze Week, then in Paris coinciding with Art Basel Paris, before arriving at Sotheby's new Breuer Building headquarters in New York ahead of the November 8 sale.

abu dhabi to host most expensive art exhibition staged by sothebys in the middle east valued at 150 m 1234753618

Abu Dhabi will host the most expensive art exhibition ever staged by Sotheby's in the Middle East on October 1 and 2, valued at approximately $150 million. The exhibition features six masterpieces by Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Frida Kahlo, René Magritte, Camille Pissarro, and Edvard Munch, sourced from major private collections including those of Leonard A. Lauder, Cindy and Jay Pritzker, and Matthew and Kay Bucksbaum. It takes place at the Bassam Freiha Art Foundation on Saadiyat Island Cultural District and marks Sotheby's first public fine art show in the UAE, ahead of its Abu Dhabi Collectors' Week in November.

aspen art week fair collectors sales report 1234748586

The second edition of the Aspen Art Fair opened at the historic Hotel Jerome with over 40 exhibitors from more than 15 countries, more than doubling its size from the previous year. The fair is one of three major events during Aspen Art Week, alongside Intersect Aspen Art and Design (now in its 15th edition) and the AIR Festival, a $20 million initiative by the Aspen Art Museum. Dealers and advisers, including Paul Henkel of Palo Gallery and Christian Gundin of El Apartamento, noted that while there are too many art fairs globally, Aspen's smaller, hyper-focused format attracts serious collectors and fosters stronger relationships. Blue-chip galleries like Sean Kelly and Marianne Boesky also participated, with Boesky having a long history in the town.

sothebys london to sell greatest collection of surrealism to emerge in recent history in september 1234744885

Sotheby's London will auction the collection of British socialite, collector, and arts patron Pauline Karpidas on September 17 and 18. Described as the 'greatest collection of Surrealism to emerge in recent history,' it includes masterpieces by René Magritte, Salvador Dalí, Leonora Carrington, and Max Ernst, along with works by Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, and others. The sale is expected to fetch £60 million ($81 million), the highest estimate ever placed on a single collection at Sotheby's in Europe. Karpidas, who began collecting 50 years ago after meeting gallerist Alexander Iolas, views herself as a 'temporary custodian' for the artworks.

Japan's Art Market Growth and Asian Art News

japans art market growth asian art news 2748613

Japan’s art market demonstrated remarkable resilience in 2024, growing by 2% to reach $692 million despite a 12% contraction in the global art market. A government-commissioned report by economist Clare McAndrew revealed that the Japanese market is characterized by high-volume, lower-value transactions, with 93% of sales occurring at price points under $10,000 and dealers accounting for the vast majority of trade.

nicolas partys new miniature paintings are a hit will they reset his struggling auction market 2737867

Nicolas Party's exhibition "Dead Fish" at Karma gallery in Chelsea, New York, features approximately 40 postcard-sized oil-on-copper works and a mural of three dead fish, a departure from his usual large-scale pastel paintings. Only 10 of the works were for sale, priced between $165,000 and $205,000, and all sold quickly. The show includes replicas of his earlier compositions, described as a "retrospective in miniature," with many pieces drawn from his archive and not available for purchase.

malba acquires 1200 works 2728866

Eduardo F. Costantini, founder of the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires (Malba), announced the acquisition of the Daros Latinamerica Collection in Zurich, adding 1,233 works by 117 artists to the museum's holdings. This roughly doubles Malba's collection to 3,000 works, with a major expansion project planned to accommodate the new pieces, set to begin next fall to mark the museum's 25th anniversary. Highlights include works by Doris Salcedo, Ana Mendieta, Julio Le Parc, Alfredo Jaar, Lygia Clark, and Jesús Rafael Soto, with 75 artists new to Malba.