Johan Dalene, an 18-year-old student from Sweden, was awarded the 1st prize at the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Violin Competition in Odense, Denmark. The article lists the prize details: €12,000 (USD $14,000), a recording with Orchid Classics, and at least 10 performance opportunities; it also mentions the 2nd and 3rd prizes and notes the competition’s open status for international violinists 29 years and younger.
San Francisco police reunited a violin owner with the instrument after it went missing on a San Francisco Municipal Railway bus near Geary Boulevard and 42nd Avenue. The violin was valued at $1,200, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Arthur Brand, an Amsterdam art detective, found Picasso's Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), a 1938 painting stolen from a Saudi prince's yacht in 1999, after a 20-year investigation. The work is valued at about 25 million euros.
The San Francisco Police say a missing violin taken from a San Francisco Muni bus has been recovered. The violin belonged to an eighth-grade student named William who left it on a 38 Muni bus on February 20 and retrieved it after it was found by a woman who later returned it following police outreach.
The article discusses cellist Richard Tunnicliffe and his collaboration with Yann Besson to obtain a new cello, detailing the motivation for upgrading from his existing instrument (a Fendt 2 cello) and the matchmaking process facilitated by Bridgewood and Neitzert. It notes Tunnicliffe’s roles and affiliations, including his position at the Royal College of Music and performances with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
The missing 1938 Picasso portrait, Portrait of Dora Maar (Buste de Femme Dora Maar), valued at 28 million dollars, was recovered in the Netherlands 20 years after it was stolen from a yacht off the south coast of France. Dutch art detective Arthur Brand led the investigation that traced the work, which was verified by Pace Gallery experts in New York and handed to an insurance company.
The 1938 Picasso portrait, titled Portrait of Dora Maar or Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), worth 28 million USD, was recovered after 20 years from the yacht of a Saudi sheikh and linked to Dutch art detective Arthur Brand. The painting surfaced in the Netherlands and was recovered by Brand after a four-year investigation involving two intermediaries.
The article reports that Niccolo Paganini’s violin known as “Il Cannone,” built by Bartolomeo Giuseppe Guarneri and associated with Paganini, will travel to Columbus, Ohio, from May 11–19. It will be on display at the Columbus Museum of Art and featured in a Columbus Symphony performance on May 15 at the Ohio Theatre. The violin is permanently displayed at Palazzo Doria-Tursi in Genoa, Italy.
The article reports that Dutch art detective Arthur Brand recovered Pablo Picasso's Buste de Femme (Dora Maar) from 1938, valued at about $28 million. The painting, previously owned by Saudi billionaire Sheikh Abdul Mohsen Abdulmalik Al-Sheikh and stolen in 1999 from a yacht in Antibes, is associated with Dora Maar and Picasso.
The article discusses Acquavella Galleries presenting David Hockney's Henry Reading (1985), a portrait of Henry Geldzahler, at Art Basel Hong Kong with an asking price around $15 million. It references a previous Hockney Geldzahler portrait that sold for $49.5 million at Christie’s London and notes the artist’s Cubist-influenced style in the new work.
Albert Oehlen, Untitled, 1988 is discussed as part of Gagosian's online viewing room, with the painting listed at $6 million and reported to have sold within three hours; the sale is described as surpassing the artist’s auction record, with the final price not disclosed and the buyer identified only as a private client known to the gallery
Alex Katz’s Ada and Louise (1987) sold for US$1.29 million (GBP 974,250) in London, setting a new auction record after a prior record in May 2018 for The Light I (1975) at Sotheby’s New York. The article notes Katz’s market recognition compared with peers like David Hockney and discusses how market dynamics can diverge from intrinsic artistic value.
Christie’s reports that the Florence and Herbert Irving Collection reached $31,908,375 during New York Asian Art Week, led by a $17,894,750 evening sale that surpassed its pre-sale estimate.
Sotheby’s documents the market development behind The Most Valuable Tibetan Thangka Painting Sold at Auction. Its account reports that otheby’s ongoing Asia Week sale series in New York has already seen history be made.
George Michael Collection generates $12,302,590 at Christie’s auction in London, with 60 lots sold 100% and an online timed sale of 112 additional lots. Proceeds support philanthropic work. Works toured to New York, Los Angeles, Hong Kong and Shanghai before public view in London.
The page profiles six contemporary Mirecourt violin makers: Jean-Philippe Cognier, Roland Terrier, Jean-Jacques Pagès, Dominique Nicosia, Gilles Duhaut, and Alain Carbonare. It provides historical context about Mirecourt’s violin making tradition and mentions the local institutions Musée de la Lutherie et de l'Archèterie Françaises and École Nationale de Lutherie.
The British Museum returns a 3,000-year-old Babylonian stone tablet to Iraq. The Victoria & Albert Museum purchases a pair of Champagne Standard lamps designed by Salvador Dalí and Edward James. PAFA receives a donation of 78 artworks from Dr. Constance E. Clayton’s collection, with works by Henri O. Tanner, Barkley L. Hendricks, and Laura Wheeler Waring among others. Christie’s George Michael Collection Online Auction grosses £2,064,125, led by Harland Miller’s Death, What’s in it for Me? (2007) at £212,500.
Sotheby’s documents the market development behind Hate-Crime Survivor Mark Hogancamp’s Gripping War Enactment Photograph is His First Offered at Auction. Its account reports that as he retaught himself how to live through multiple forms of therapy, Hogancamp created his own emotional outlet: Marwencol, a fictional Belgian town set in World War II, meticulously constructed from dolls and found objects in Hogancamp’s garden.
The Violin Channel reports a stolen 1769 Nicolaus Gagliano violin from Berlin, Germany. The alert requests information to be shared and provides a Berlin Police contact email for tips.
Tracey Emin and other artists are featured in the George Michael collection sale at Christie’s London, which achieved £9.3 million ($12.3 million) on a 60-lot sale. The buyer’s premium is included in final prices; hammer prices do not include it. The sale benefited charitable causes, and the collection was built in the 1990s with works by Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst, Sarah Lucas, and Marc Quinn.
Christie’s reports that The George Michael Collection realised £11,328,125, including £9,264,000 in the London Evening Auction, with proceeds extending the singer’s philanthropic legacy.
The article discusses SØR Rusche, a German fashion retailer, selling over 4,000 contemporary artworks and 220 Old Master works to fund its digital transformation and protect jobs. The sale will be staged across two auction houses in 2019, with Old Masters at Sotheby’s London and the contemporary portion at Van Ham in Cologne; a batch of 150 lots goes on sale in Germany on May 29.
Sotheby’s documents the market development behind Masterworks by Bacon, Beckmann, Guston and De Kooning from the Gerald L. Lennard Foundation Collection. Its account reports that passionately assembled by successful commodities trader Gerard L.
Gerhard Richter’s 1963 jet fighter painting Düsenjäger sold for £15.5m (including fees) at Phillips in London, following a failed payment by the previous buyer Zhang Chan who bid $25.6m in 2016. The work, previously on offer in New York in 2016 with a $25m-$35m estimate, had been the subject of a legal settlement in March 2018 involving Phillips and the heirs of Paul Allen.
David Hockney’s Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott (1969) sold for £33 million ($43.4 million) with commission bringing the total to £37.7 million ($49.5 million). The sale at Christie’s London realized £79.3 million in total. The work is part of Hockney’s Double Portrait series, depicting pairs of sitters in domestic settings. Other notable results included Nicolas de Staël’s Bouteilles (Bottles) (1952) surpassing its high estimate.
Knilling plans a limited number of Nicolo Gabrielli Guadagnini violin #87FD to be available for 2019. The article includes quotes from Lang Shen, Product Manager of Knilling, and notes the instruments are made in the USA by the Nicolo Gabrieli Shop.
David Hockney est nommé comme l’artiste concerné. L’œuvre Henry Geldzahler et Christopher Scott (1969) s’est vendue pour 37,6 millions de livres sterling lors d’une vente Christie’s à Londres, contre une estimation de 30 millions. La soirée a rapporté 79,3 millions de livres pour 41 lots vendus.
Gerhard Richter’s painting Düsenjäger, 1963, sold for £15.5 million ($20.4 million) at Phillips’s Berkeley Square headquarters in London, contributing to a total £36.4 million ($47.9 million) for the house’s evening sale of 20th-century and contemporary art. The night before totals were £31.3 million ($41.1 million) before fees.
David Hockney's 1969 portrait of Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott sold for £37.6m. The piece is part of the artist's double portrait series and was the top lot at Christie's 20th Century Week in London.
David Hockney’s Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott (1969) sold for $49.5 million at Christie’s London Contemporary Sale, part of a £79.3 million ($104.6 million) evening sale in London. The painting, which features Henry Geldzahler and Christopher Scott, went for £33 million hammer, with the seller the estate of Barney A. Ebsworth; the buyer’s premium and other details are noted in Christie’s report.
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Apex, 1986, sold for about $10.8 million at Sotheby’s London. The sale totaled £93.3 million (about $122.9 million) with 60 of 66 lots sold. Other notable works included Gerhard Richter’s Abstraktes Bild, 2009, sold for $9.12 million and Jenny Saville’s Juncture, 1994, sold for $7.17 million.
Jack Whitten’s Special Checking (1974) sold for $2,660,000 including fees (hammer price $2.2 million) at Sotheby’s Contemporary Curated sale in New York, setting a new artist record for Whitten. The painting, an oil on canvas with rope collage, had an estimate of $300,000–$500,000 and measures 54 1/8 x 95 7/8 inches. Kerry James Marshall’s Untitled (Painter) and George Condo’s Smiling Girl with Black Hair were ranked ahead and behind in the sale’s top lots; Whitten’s previous record was Ancient Mentor I (1985) at $2,235,000.
Kerry James Marshall’s Untitled (Painter), a 2008 acrylic on PVC panel portrait, sold for $6.2 million hammer price and $7,325,800 with fees at Sotheby’s Contemporary Curated sale in New York. The work was Lot 209, estimated at $1.8 to $2.5 million. The sale’s top two lots were by African American artists, followed by George Condo’s Smiling Girl with Black Hair, and Jack Whitten’s Special Checking.
The Kreutzer Quartet participated in the British Violin Makers Association Makers Day at Kings Place on 3 February 2019. The post thanks Emma Hardy for photographs and describes the day including a lunchtime concert where 20 instruments were showcased, the emphasis on exchange of ideas in lutherie and performance, and reflections on instrument diversity and understanding of what constitutes a violin.
Maegis blog headline refers to the article title about the first Impressionist and Modern sales of 2019, highlighting Christie's and Sotheby’s performance and notable works such as Paul Signac’s Le Port au soleil couchant and Monet’s Saule pleureur et bassin aux nymphéas.