Martha Stewart has curated her first-ever art auction with Joopiter, Pharrell Williams' auction platform, titled "The Contemporary Take." The sale features nearly 50 works by leading contemporary artists including Andy Warhol, Amy Sherald, Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, Damien Hirst, and Ai Weiwei, running from April 28 through May 6. Highlights include Yiadom-Boakye's "Bark Scraper" (estimated $900,000–$1.2 million), Hirst's pillcase "Up at Dawn" ($500,000–$700,000), and works by George Condo, Esther Mahlangu, and Hank Willis Thomas.
The sale matters because it marks a notable crossover between mainstream celebrity culture and the contemporary art market, leveraging Stewart's vast lifestyle brand and audience to introduce new collectors to high-value art. It also underscores the growing influence of artist-led auction platforms like Joopiter in reshaping how art is sold and marketed, blending entertainment, accessibility, and blue-chip names in a single event.