Julie Mehretu, Untitled 1 (est. $600-800,000) and Damien Hirst, Weve Got Style (The Vessel Collection Blue/Green) (est. $800,000-1,200,000) are highlighted as top lots at Sothebys.com; other notable works include John Currin, Shakespeare Actress (est. $500,000-700,000) among pieces from Lehman Brothers collections; the sale aims to raise funds for creditors with an estimated total around $13 million across three auctions at Sotheby's New York, Christie’s London, and Freeman’s Philadelphia.
The article reports that Poly Auction's 11th session of fine auctions in Beijing concluded with a total成交额 of RMB 1.94 billion. Highlights include Wang Fu’s painting 万里江山图 (Lot by Wang Fu) achieving the top price of RMB 6,832,000, Xu Beihong’s painting 逆风 selling for RMB 3,360,000, and a porcelain vase Qing Qianlong with RMB 2,464,000 leading in its category.
Christie’s reported a global art auction turnover of 2.57 billion USD for the first half of 2010, up from 1.8 billion USD in the prior year. The results show strong market demand, with 169 works selling for over 1 million pounds, and Picasso’s Nude, Green Leaves and Bust selling for 107 million USD (the highest price for a work at auction). The report notes Asia’s growing importance in the market and Christie’s leadership in the high-end segment.
Steve Wynn bought a late-era Rembrandt self-portrait titled Portrait of a Man With Arms Akimbo for $33 million in a Christie’s sale arranged with Sotheby’s bidding. Otto Naumann commented on the deal, and Wynn had previously caused a commotion by puncturing Picasso’s Le Reve in 2006.
The Sunday Times reports that Claude Cassirer, 89, has been given permission by an American court to sue Spain and the Thyssen-Bornemisza foundation for the return of a $20m (£13m) Pissarro painting (Rue Saint-Honoré, Paris) that was sold to the Nazis for $360 in 1939. The work currently hangs in Madrid’s Thyssen-Bornemisza museum, and Cassirer’s pursuit follows ongoing legal action since 2000.
The article reports that Egon Schiele's painting Portrait of Wally was displayed in Vienna after a 12-year dispute over its possession, with Leopold Museum paying 15 million euros (about $19 million) as part of the settlement to Lea Bondi Jaray's estate. The painting had been disputed due to Nazi-era restitution efforts and U.S. authorities initially refused to return it.
Egon Schiele painting returned to a Vienna museum after a 12-year dispute over its ownership. The Leopold Museum agreed to pay 19 million dollars (15 million euros) as part of the settlement with heirs of the original owner, and the painting was rehung and displayed again. The work involved is Portrait of Wally by Egon Schiele.
The painting Portrait of Wally by Egon Schiele was returned to the estate of Lea Bondi Jaray after a legal dispute, with the Leopold Museum agreeing to pay 15 million euros. The work had been claimed by the Bondi Jaray heirs after it was seized by the Nazis, and U.S. authorities had previously blocked its transfer from MoMA to the Leopold Museum.
National Museum Wales (Amgueddfa Cymru) has purchased a painting by Francesco Guardi, View of the Palazzo Loredan dell’Ambasciatore on the Grand Canal, Venice (oil on panel, 24.3 x 35.5 cm), with the help of the Art Fund. The work was accepted in lieu of Inheritance Tax by HM Government and allocated to Amgueddfa Cymru, expanding the museum’s 18th century collections and joining other Venice-related depictions by Canaletto, Monet, Sickert, and Whistler.
John W. Coker announced a Sept. 15, 2010 no-reserve auction in New Market, Tennessee, featuring the Dr. Albert K. Chapman collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist works, including pieces by Childe Hassam, Alfred Sisley, Pierre Bonnard and a Mary Cassatt pastel; the collection comprises 80+ artworks and was privately held since the 1930s.