Art News. Vasari Codex

trending_up market schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 42 link 15 artists, 2 galleries

Phillips Modern & Contemporary Sale Nets $115.2 M., With Strong Results for Women Artists

Phillips’ modern and contemporary art evening sale on Tuesday achieved $115.2 million against a presale estimate of $84.2 million, its highest since 2022. All 40 lots sold, with standout results for works by living artists like Joseph Yaeger, whose painting fetched $477,300 against a $60,000 estimate, and Anna Weyant, whose work sold for $980,400. Works by 20th-century female artists including Lee Bontecou, Olga de Amaral, and Helen Frankenthaler also exceeded expectations, with Bontecou’s pastel setting a record for a two-dimensional work by the artist at $4.3 million.

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trending_up market schedule Dec 17, 2025 visibility 28 link 7 artists, 1 gallery

christies 2025 sales results uptick

Christie's and Sotheby's have released their projected 2025 sales results, signaling a potential recovery after three years of market contraction. Sotheby's reported total sales of $7 billion, a 17% increase over 2024, with fine art up 15% to $4.3 billion. Christie's posted $6.2 billion, a 6% rise from $5.8 billion in 2024, bolstered by $234 million from its Gooding acquisition. Notable sales include Canaletto's Venice, the Return of the Bucintoro on Ascension Day for £31.9 million at Christie's and a Gustav Klimt painting that sold for $236 million at Sotheby's.

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trending_up market schedule May 14, 2025 visibility 30 link 35 artists, 4 galleries

At Sotheby’s, a $70M Giacometti Fails to Sell While Works By Munch and Cézanne Ignite Buyer Excitement

Sotheby’s Modern Evening Auction on May 13, 2025, achieved $186.4 million in sales but was overshadowed by the failure of its headline lot: Alberto Giacometti’s hand-painted bronze bust *Grande tête mince (Grande tête de Diego)*, estimated at $70 million. The work, consigned by the Soloviev Foundation, went unsold after minimal bidding, lacking a guarantee or irrevocable bid. Other highlights included a strong performance by Edvard Munch and Paul Cézanne works, with 40% of lots exceeding high estimates. Notable sales included Georgia O’Keeffe’s *Leaves of a Plant* ($12.97 million) and Alexander Calder’s *Four Big Dots* ($8.285 million), both fresh to market.

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trending_up market schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 15 link 28 artists, 1 gallery

Sotheby’s $304M Modern Evening Auction Confirms the Market Has Found Its Footing

Sotheby's Modern Evening Auction on May 19 achieved $304 million with a 98% sell-through rate across 45 lots, more than doubling the total from the equivalent sale in November. The auction was anchored by fresh-to-market masterpieces, including Henri Matisse's "La Chaise Lorraine" from the Barbier-Müller collection, which sold for $48.4 million—the second-highest price for a Matisse painting at auction. Other highlights included works from the Enrico Donati collection, which generated a combined $58.9 million, and Pablo Picasso's "Arlequin (Buste)" (1909) selling for $42.6 million. The sale contributed to a running combined total of $839.6 million for Sotheby's marquee sales, following strong results from the Mnuchin collection and Contemporary Day Auction.

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trending_up market schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 16 link 18 artists

Sotheby’s Pulls In $303.9 M. in a Solid but Subdued Modern Evening Sale Led by $48 M. Matisse

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.

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trending_up market schedule Nov 25, 2025 visibility 12 link 9 artists

sothebys modern sales by the numbers

Sotheby's three-part modern art evening auction in New York on Thursday night achieved a total of $304.6 million, a dramatic increase from the $93.1 million equivalent sale last year. The sale featured 69 lots, with three withdrawn and none bought in, resulting in a 95% sell-through rate. Top lots included Vincent van Gogh's still life "Piles de romans parisiens et roses dans une verre" (1887), which sold for $62.7 million with premium to private advisor Patti Wong, and a work by Frida Kahlo. Third-party guarantees covered 55% of the presale low estimate, but bidding remained competitive throughout.

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trending_up market schedule Apr 26, 2025 visibility 24 link 12 artists

rare basquiat sothebys contemporary auctions in new york

Sotheby's will auction a rediscovered early Jean-Michel Basquiat painting from 1981, unseen for 36 years, with a $10–15 million estimate at its Contemporary Evening Auction in New York this May. The sale also features major works from three tightly held private collections: the estate of Barbara Gladstone, the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, and Daniella Luxembourg's 'Im Spazio' group, alongside top lots by Lucio Fontana, Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella, and Ed Ruscha. The Modern Evening Auction includes a Pablo Picasso musketeer portrait and a Georgia O'Keeffe painting, with combined estimates for both sales reaching up to $525.2 million.

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trending_up market schedule May 16, 2025 visibility 27 link 12 artists, 1 gallery

70 million giacometti flops at sothebys as demand for trophy art softens

The top lot of Sotheby's May auction season in New York, Alberto Giacometti's bronze sculpture *Grande tête mince (Grande tête de Diego)* (1955), estimated at $70 million, failed to sell on Tuesday night. The work was consigned by the Soloviev Foundation, set up by Stefan Soloviev, son of late mega-collector Sheldon Solow, and was offered without a financial guarantee, a risky strategy that backfired when no bidders emerged. Auctioneer Oliver Barker made several chandelier bids before declaring the lot unsold at $64.2 million, shocking the packed salesroom.

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trending_up market schedule Apr 13, 2026 visibility 29 link 10 artists, 1 gallery

The Personal Collection of ‘Last Surrealist’ Enrico Donati Heads to Auction

Sotheby’s has announced the sale of the personal art collection of Enrico Donati, often referred to as the 'last Surrealist.' The 45-lot collection, titled "A Night in May," features works amassed by Donati and his wife Adele, including a rare 1909 Cubist portrait by Pablo Picasso, 'Arlequin (Buste),' estimated at $40 million. The auction marks the first time these intimate pieces—many acquired through direct exchanges with friends like Marcel Duchamp and Yves Tanguy—have been offered since the artist's death in 2008 and his wife's passing last year.

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trending_up market schedule May 20, 2026 visibility 12 link 21 artists

Bidding battle for Matisse leads Sotheby’s $303.3m Modern art evening sale in New York

Sotheby’s Modern evening auction on 19 May in New York achieved $303.3m with fees, falling within its pre-sale estimate of $244m to $322.8m. The standout lot was Henri Matisse’s 1919 painting *La Chaise lorraine*, which sold for $48.4m after a ten-minute bidding battle, becoming the second most valuable Matisse painting at auction. Other highlights included Alberto Giacometti’s *La Clairière (Composition avec neuf figures)* at $23.1m, Pablo Picasso’s *Arlequin (Buste, 1909)* at $42.6m, and a Mark Rothko untitled work on paper at $9.27m. The sale also saw strong demand for works by female Surrealists Leonor Fini and Leonora Carrington, while a Rodin sculpture was passed and a Gottlieb painting was withdrawn.

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trending_up market schedule May 14, 2025 visibility 20 link 4 artists

giacometti bust fails to sell at sothebys may 2025 sale

A 1955 bronze bust by Alberto Giacometti, estimated at $70 million, failed to sell at Sotheby's modern evening auction in New York on May 13, 2025. The sculpture, from the estate of real estate magnate Sheldon Solow, was offered without a guarantee and bidding reached $64 million before the lot was pulled after four minutes, likely because the reserve price was set above that amount. Auctioneer Oliver Barker presided over the sale, which Sotheby's CEO Charles Stewart described as an organic auction moment despite the lack of a sale.

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