Sotheby's held two major evening sales in New York—the Mnuchin collection sale and The Now & Contemporary Evening Auction—generating a combined $433.1 million. The Mnuchin sale achieved a white-glove result of $166.3 million, led by Mark Rothko's *Brown and Blacks in Reds* (1957) which sold for $85.8 million, while the contemporary auction reached $266.8 million, with Jean-Michel Basquiat's *Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown)* as the top lot. The results fell within presale estimates but marked a 133% increase over last May's contemporary sales.
These auctions kicked off New York's May marquee sales week, expected to exceed $1 billion overall, and demonstrated continued strong demand for blue-chip modern and contemporary art. The Mnuchin sale highlighted the enduring influence of legendary dealer Robert Mnuchin's eye, while the overall results signal a robust art market despite economic uncertainties, with particular strength in works by Rothko, de Kooning, and Basquiat.