Sotheby’s London held a contemporary evening sale on Thursday, totaling £47.6 million ($63.3 million), a significant increase from the £37.6 million ($49.2 million) achieved in the same Frieze-timed sale last year. The auction featured 27 lots, with about three-quarters fresh to the market and over half carrying guarantees. The top seller was Francis Bacon’s *Portrait of a Dwarf* (1975), which sold for £13 million ($17.5 million), well above its high estimate. Tom Eddison, Sotheby’s co-head of contemporary art, took the rostrum for his first marquee evening auction, guiding confident bidding that included a cross-Channel contest for the Bacon piece, ultimately won by a client represented by Johan Nauckhoff, the house’s head of fine art for Switzerland.
This sale matters because it signals a stabilizing and resilient art market in London, with realistic estimates and measured bidding replacing the frothy, high-risk auctions of previous years. The strong results, particularly the 89% sell-through rate and the premium achieved for the Bacon portrait, suggest that collectors remain engaged and confident despite broader economic uncertainties. The sale also underscores the importance of Frieze Week as a catalyst for market activity, with Eddison noting a buoyant mood and an unexpected number of American visitors at the fair. The performance provides a positive benchmark for the autumn season and reinforces London’s position as a key hub for contemporary art sales.