Frida Kahlo's 1940 self-portrait *El sueño (La cama)* sold for $54.7 million at Sotheby's on Thursday, setting a new auction record for a woman artist. The sale surpassed the previous record held by Georgia O'Keeffe and Kahlo's own prior record. Separately, Louvre director Laurence des Cars gave a major interview addressing security failures after a recent heist, and influential collector Dorothy Vogel died at age 90.
A New York judge has ruled against billionaire investor and art collector Ronald O. Perelman in his attempt to collect $400 million from insurers for five paintings allegedly damaged in a 2018 fire at his East Hampton estate. Justice Joel M. Cohen of State Supreme Court in Manhattan found no visible damage to the works—two by Andy Warhol, two by Ed Ruscha, and one by Cy Twombly—and nothing traceable to the fire that would reduce their value. Perelman claimed the fire robbed the paintings of their 'spark' and 'oomph,' but insurers including Lloyd's of London, Chubb, and AIG countered that the works were unscathed and accused Perelman of filing claims under severe financial pressure after a collapse in Revlon stock.
Art adviser Ralph DeLuca argues in Cultured that recent gallery closures, bankruptcies, and lawsuits in the art market are driven by dealers and advisers trying to live like their ultra-wealthy clients, a lifestyle he says clients resent in commission-based vendors. He also suggests that art focused on identity politics and virtue signaling no longer resonates with collectors, who are shifting toward passion and connoisseurship. Meanwhile, Artsy’s Maxwell Rabb offers a more optimistic take, framing the market downturn as an opportunity for reinvention, with quotes from CLEARING’s Babin and ADAA director Kinsey Robb about cutting through market 'fluff' and embracing creative change.