Art Basel Miami Beach opened with a VIP preview that saw strong sales across price points, from blue-chip acquisitions to mid-range works. David Zwirner led with a Gerhard Richter painting for $5.5 million, while Hauser & Wirth sold a George Condo for $4 million. The debut of Zero 10, a platform for digital art, sold out its presentation. Other notable sales included works by Alice Neel, Josef Albers, Louise Bourgeois, and Andreas Gursky, with galleries like Pace, White Cube, and Gladstone also reporting significant transactions.
The strong opening sales signal sustained demand in the art market, particularly for established blue-chip artists and emerging digital practices. The success of Zero 10 highlights growing institutional and collector interest in digital art, while the broad range of sales—from seven-figure works to pieces under $30,000—shows a healthy, multi-tiered market. The fair's performance is a key indicator of art market confidence heading into the rest of the season.