Autumn auctions Sotheby's and Christie's

[SergeiSK]

Time sculptures
Art-market crisis has passed another test: the two largest auction houses had a fall auction impressionists and modernists. If the results of auction house Christie's boldly be called a failure, the Sotheby's auction for the first time in the past three years exceeded even the expectations of the organizers. Through the work of Giacometti, Picasso, Van Dongen and Derain Sotheby's rescued by 182 million dollars - almost three times more competitor.
As in any difficult times, attracted the attention of buyers first work, an investment whose value is obvious. It was mostly classical works of the Impressionists - Pissarro, Degas, Renoir and Signac, and also relatively cheap works by artists of the second and third levels - such as Tamara de Lempicka de and Kees van Dongen. Do not remain without attention and "reliable" Kandinsky - both auction houses have sold three of its work for two.
Officially opened by the autumn auctions Christie's, put up for sale 41 lot. The main subject of the auction was declared Pablo Picasso's painting "Head of a Woman" - written in 1943 portrait of Dora Maar. The painting was estimated to be 7 - $ 10 million, but bidders are not willing to pay for it more than 6,4 million, and the lot was not sold out, despite the fact that the organizers tried to warm up the interest of buyers, especially Picasso reserving a place in the middle of night .

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Against this background of the failure of top-lot auction was one of the first paintings of the late period of Edgar Degas' "Dancers", sold for 10.7 million dollars - nearly two million more expensive than the upper limit of the assessment. The picture became a buyer from Asia, who participated in the bidding by telephone. His Degas was sold at Sotheby's: "Horseback riding" went for 4.67 million dollars.
All Christie's managed to sell only two-thirds of lots, most of which went at a price that barely exceeds the lower limit estimates. Among these was the landscape paintings of Claude Monet's "Vetey in the sunlight," sold for 5.67 million dollars - no small role in its success was the fact that the painting auctioned one of the biggest French Impressionists dealers dealer Paul Durand-Ruel. Although, as exemplified by "the railway bridge at Pontoise" Pissarro, the origin is not always mattered. Pissarro exhibited great grandson of the artist's work failed to sell: it claimed only one buyer, offered 3.2 million dollars with a minimum assessment of 3,5 million.
Faded auction Christie's experts explained not too outstanding quality of the works: According to a New York gallery owner Paul Gray, the owners of the paintings are reluctant to put up for auction paintings stand waiting for better times. However, in the masterpieces of buyers willing to pay even in a crisis, it is shown, for example, "Naked on a plain Rosas, Salvador Dali, which was sold for $ 4 million, and the Old Port in Cannes," Paul Signac, whose price was 3.77 million.
A proposal made by Gray has successfully disproved the view Sotheby's, who on Nov. 4 has almost the most successful auction in the last three years. Of the 66 lots before the house managed to sell 56, was rescued by 181.8 million dollars, leaving the competition far behind. Especially popular among the customers enjoyed a follower of Matisse Netherlands Kees van Dongen - his "young Arab" has brought to the organizers of 13,8 million dollars, setting a record price for a work by this artist, and "Naked in the black hat" went for 3.55 million, almost two times the upper limit estimate. Successfully sold and other Fauvism - André Derain, his "Boats in the port Koliura also set a record and were sold for 14.08 million dollars in assessing the total 8 million.
The clear Pissarro and Renoir were also successfully sold - the best buyers found a copy of "Bridge Bualde and Orleans railway station in Rouen Pissarro, sold for 7.02 million dollars in the evaluation of 3 million. It is well proved, and "reliable" work of Vasily Kandinsky, the most expensive of which was "sharp and soft," sold at Sotheby's for 10.6 million dollars.
Despite the difference in results, the main subjects and those on other auctions have become sculpture. The greatest interest of buyers Christie's called one of the bronze "Kisses" Auguste Rodin, valued at 1.2 million dollars. After extensive bargaining sculpture, inspired by the history of Paolo and Francesca, from an anonymous collector bought the New York dealer Christopher Akin, who paid 6.3 million dollars.
Top-lot auction Sotheby's became the "falling man" Alberto Giacometti, sculpture enjoyed stable popularity until time of crisis. Exhibited on the auction owner of publishing house Conde Nast and collector Samuel Irvine Newhouse sculpture is one of six similar made by Giacometti in the early 1950's. From all the rest, it differs in that the artist painted it. It gave lot of particular value in monetary terms amounting to 19,3 million dollars - that is how much it paid for some collector from Eastern Europe.
If we consider that even in the summer "Cat" in the same Giacometti, estimated at 16-22 million dollars at Sotheby's failed to sell, you can talk about at least partial restoration of the market, especially taking into account the outcome of trades. Whatever it was, until the price level of 2004-2006, when the top lots were sold at a price of 40-50 million dollars, the art is still far away. While there is and all the signs of "crisis" auctions: preference is given to work with low to medium price ranges and tested classics.
According to some experts, the market confidence returns. Some even believed that the rich collectors (mainly from Asia and Europe) through which the prices of art have reached unprecedented heights, successfully tested a crisis, and again started to buy. With certainty you can say only one thing: autumn auctions significantly exceeded the results of the May auctions: when Christie's and Sotheby's sold two of the impressionists and modernists at 164 million dollars, now - at 247.5 million.
Alex Kadaner