Sotheby's evening auction in New York on May 13, 2025, realized $407.5 million ($433.1m with fees), led by Mark Rothko's "Brown and Blacks in Reds" (1957) from the collection of the late dealer Robert Mnuchin, which sold for $74m ($85.7m with fees). The sale opened with all eleven lots from Mnuchin's collection achieving a 'white glove' result, totaling $140.7m ($166.3m with fees), and continued with a mixed-vendor contemporary section that added $223m ($266.8m with fees), setting four new artist records.
The auction's strong performance, midway between pre-sale estimates of $325.6m to $444m, signals a resurgence of market confidence amid global geopolitical uncertainty. The sale also highlighted the trend of works returning to market from rival Christie's, and the shift to Sotheby's new headquarters at The Breuer, formerly the Whitney Museum of American Art, underscoring the evolving landscape of New York's auction scene.