La notte dei record di Christie’s a New York. Ecco com’è andata la mega asta d’arte da più di un miliardo di dollari
On May 18, 2026, Christie’s in New York held a landmark evening auction that surpassed $1.1 billion in total sales, driven by two sessions: Masterpieces: The Private Collection of S.I. Newhouse and a sale of 20th-century art. The Newhouse collection alone brought in $631 million, making it the second most valuable collection ever sold at auction, behind Paul Allen’s $1.7 billion sale in 2022. Record prices were set for Jackson Pollock’s Number 7A, 1948, which sold for $181.2 million, and Constantin Brancusi’s Danaïde (1913), which fetched $107.6 million, a record for a sculpture at auction. Other artists achieving strong results included Mark Rothko, Joan Miró, and Alice Neel.
This auction matters because it demonstrates the enduring strength of the ultra-high-end art market, where trophy works from prestigious collections continue to command extraordinary prices. The sale of S.I. Newhouse’s collection—built on a philosophy of quality, provenance, and rarity—highlights how blue-chip masterpieces by canonical modern artists remain a safe haven for wealth. The record for Pollock, tripling his previous auction high, and Brancusi’s sculpture record signal that top-tier works can still generate fierce competition and set new benchmarks, even in a market that has seen fluctuations in other segments.