Monthly archive
26 headlines
Source-linked reporting
theartnewspaper.com
French heirs sue Serbia over seized paintings. The lawsuit concerns 429 works from the Vollard collection housed at the National Museum in Belgrade, stemming from Ambroise Vollard’s estate and related figures.
Christie’s
Christie’s staged a sculpture exhibition at Waddesdon Manor that placed works by artists including Richard Serra, Jeff Koons and Anish Kapoor in dialogue with Chardin.
latimes.com
The article discusses California's resale royalty law and its recent challenge, noting that federal judge Jacqueline Nguyen ruled the California Resale Royalty Act of 1976 unconstitutional and dismissed a class-action suit against Christie’s and Sotheby’s by artists Chuck Close, Laddie John Dill, the estate of Robert Graham, and the Sam Francis Foundation.
nrk.no
The article concerns Dietmar Machold, head of a prestigious fifth-generation family business dating back to 1861, who is currently in jail awaiting trial. It discusses how two Stradivarius-like violins valued at around 40 million kroner total were found not to be by Stradivari and later valued at 15,000 to 20,000 kroner each. It reports on allegations of a large-scale instrument-related fraud, with claims totaling around 750 million kroner from multiple banks and clients, and notes Machold's role as an intermediary who allegedly resold the same instruments multiple times to finance lavish spending.
vancouversun.com
Jean-Paul Lemieux’s La plage americaine sold for $1.813 million (including commission) and Emily Carr's Eagle Totem sold for $1.638 million (including commission) at a Heffel auction in Vancouver. The event, held at the Vancouver Convention Centre, was the sixth biggest sale of Canadian art in history, with other notable works and prices mentioned.
kovels.com
The article reports that a 17th-century Stradivarius cello fell off a table in Madrid during a photoshoot, breaking a neck-to-body connector piece and requiring repair. The cello is valued at about $26 million.
parkwestgallery.com
The article reports that the British Museum is publicly displaying Pablo Picasso’s Suite Vollard in its entirety for a limited period. The suite comprises 97 etchings and 3 portraits, engraved between 1930 and 1937, and is shown in room 90. Ambroise Vollard commissioned the plates, and the work reflects Picasso’s travels, personal relationships, and historical context leading up to the Guernica era.
artinvestment.ru
Man Ray’s legacy, including about 4,500 works stored in a Long Island automotive shop and safes, is valued at around $20 million. The collection, tied to Juliet Man Ray and now managed by her family, includes photographs and other items used by Man Ray, with a potential sale to private museums discussed.
paulfrasercollectibles.com
Jean-Michel Basquiat's Untitled (1981) sold for $16.3 million in New York, beating the previous Basquiat auction record of $14.6 million and surpassing its estimated range of $8-12 million by 11.7%. The piece depicts a Christ-figure with a crown of thorns and was created in Basquiat's most productive year.
forbes.com
The article reports a Basquiat selling for $16 million at a Phillips art sale, setting a new world record.
total.kz
Article reports that a Stradivarius cello worth over $20 million, stored in a royal palace, was damaged in an accident. The damage described includes a damaged neck (gриф) and part of the back plate. The instrument is stated to be repairable and will be restored, per Associated Press.
nytimes.com
Rothko painting Orange, Red, Yellow (1961) sold for nearly $87 million at Christie’s, setting a contemporary-art auction record. The sale contributed to a total of about $388.5 million for the evening, with 59 works offered and three failing to sell; artists mentioned include Jackson Pollock, Barnett Newman, Alexander Calder, Gerhard Richter and Yves Klein.
beaconjournal.com
The Akron Art Museum’s Untitled #96 by Cindy Sherman sold for $2.5 million at Christie’s New York Postwar Contemporary Evening Sale, with a total of $2,882,500 including tax and commission. The sale included works by Mark Rothko, Alexander Calder, Roy Lichtenstein, Hans Hofmann, Willem de Kooning, Richard Diebenkorn, Arshile Gorky and a Duchamp urinal reproduction; the presale estimate for Sherman’s piece was $2.8–3.8 million, and proceeds go to a new endowment fund for the museum by Mitchell Kahan.
cbc.ca
Roy Lichtenstein’s Sleeping Girl sold for $44,882,500 and Ai Weiwei’s Sunflower Seeds brought $782,500 at Sotheby’s contemporary art sale, both setting records for their artists. Andy Warhol’s Double Elvis sold for $37,042,500 in the same sale.
artnews.com
Edvard Munch’s The Scream, 1895 sold for $119.9 million at Sotheby’s May 3 evening sale, setting a new auction record. The result contributed to Sotheby’s total of $330.6 million, aided by over $80 million from Theodore Forstmann’s private collection. The artwork came from Petter Olsen, with bidding led by Sotheby’s Tobias Meyer, Charles Moffett, and Stephane Connery among others, and the painting ultimately sold to a bidder connected to a major museum.
artnews.com
Christie’s contemporary sale, led by Mark Rothko, set a record at $388.5 million, surpassing the prior record of $384.6 million from 2007. The sale featured records for 12 artists including Rothko, Klein, Pollock, and Richter, with Rothko's Orange, Red, Yellow (1961) realizing $86.9 million, the highest price for a contemporary work at auction. The Pincus collection contributed $174.9 million to the total, marking it as the most expensive collection of postwar and contemporary art sold at auction.
newsfeed.time.com
A Stradivarius cello worth more than $20 million was damaged after falling from a table during a photo shoot at Spain’s Royal Palace in Madrid. The piece connecting the neck to the body reportedly broke; a replacement installed in the 19th century may be repaired. Tim Ingles of Sotheby’s estimated the instrument’s value at about $20 million.
Christie’s
Christie’s reported a $388.5 million Post-War and Contemporary evening sale in New York, where Mark Rothko’s Orange, Red, Yellow reached $86.9 million.
sandiegouniontribune.com
The Stradivarius cello at the Spanish Royal Palace was damaged in an accident, with the damage affecting a neck joint replacement from the 19th century. A National Heritage official did not specify the cause, and Sotheby’s Tim Ingles estimated the cello could be worth about $20 million (over €15.4 million). The instrument is said to be repairable and part of a group known as “the Quartet.”
benningviolins.com
The article discusses Benning Violins, formerly Studio City Music in Los Angeles, releasing a new state-of-the-art website on May 10, 2012. It highlights the catalog of master-crafted violins, violas, and cellos by Eric and Hans Benning and other makers, and notes development by BrightBulb Solutions.
reuters.com
Edvard Munch's The Scream sold for $120 million at Sotheby's, setting a new auction record. The 1895 work was bought during a telephone bidding war after originally being valued at about $80 million.
artinvestment.ru
Edvard Munch's 1895 painting Shout sold for 119,922,500 dollars at Sotheby's in New York, setting a record for the most expensive artwork sold at public auction. The work, one of four versions, was purchased by an unknown buyer after a bidding war that began at 40 million dollars.
artnews.com
Edvard Munch's The Scream, a 1895 pastel version, sold for $119.9 million at Sotheby’s, becoming the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction. The sale set Sotheby’s high total for an Impressionist-modern auction at $331 million with 76 lots, surpassing the prior record for Picasso’s Nude, Green Leaves and Bust sold at Christie’s in 2010 for $106.5 million.
latimes.com
Edvard Munch's The Scream sold for 119.9 million dollars at Sotheby’s in New York, setting a record for the most expensive artwork sold at auction. The painting previously held the record for Munch and beat Picasso’s Nude, Green, Leave and Bust sold at Christie’s in 2010 for 106.5 million dollars.
Christie’s
Christie’s announced more than 180 lots from Alberto Morrocco’s family, combining the Scottish painter’s work with furniture and material from his Dundee studio.
artnews.com
Robert Rauschenberg’s 1959 can be valued by Sonnabend heirs at zero for estate taxes due to the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and Migratory Bird Treaty Act, while the IRS Art Advisory Panel estimated $65 million for the work Canyon. The IRS issued a Notice of Deficiency demanding an additional $29.2 million in taxes plus $11.7 million in penalties, prompting litigation led by Ralph Lerner.