LONDON: 20^TH / 21^ST CENTURY FRIEZE WEEK SALES: £84,185,875 / $115,115,527 / €99,017,071

20^TH / 21^ST CENTURY: EVENING SALE INCLUDING THINKING ITALIAN, LONDON

• Hurvin Anderson’s Audition achieved £7,369,000 / $10,073,423 / €8,665,944, a World Auction Record for the artist, more than double the previous record. Leading the sale and continuing strong results for Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Because it Hurts the Lungs, inspired by Da Vinci, sold for £8,227,750

• Cecily Brown’s There’ll be Bluebirds, offered as part of ‘Artists for ClientEarth’, an initiative between the Gallery Climate Coalition and Christie’s, and generously donated by the artist and Thomas Dane Gallery, sold for £3,502,500, an example of sustainability featuring at the heart of London’s Frieze Week

• The first NFT to be offered by Christie’s in Europe, Bored Apes by Yuga Labs, continued market dominance in the category, selling to a bidder in the London saleroom for £982,500, who paid in Ether

• Strong results were achieved for young female artists:

  • Julie Curtiss, Hairy Hat: £250,000

  • Shara Hughes, Me Me Me: £400,000

  • Hilary Pecis, Kaba on a Chair: £225,000

  • Emily Mae Smith, Paint While Screaming: £118,750

• The 20/21 Frieze Week presentation at Christie’s showcased masterpieces against the backdrop of innovative collaborations:

  • In ‘Bold Black British’, Aindrea Emelife brought together the work of Black British artists, from the 1980s to the present day, celebrating their significant contribution to the UK’s cultural landscape

  • Stanley Donwood has collaborated with Radiohead to create cover art since their 1996 album The Bends. Six works by Donwood, from the period 1999-2001, closely relating to the cover and sleeve art of Kid A were exhibited at King Street alongside drawings, lyrics and digital art curated by Stanley Donwood and Thom Yorke. They were then sold for record prices in First Open: Post-War and Contemporary Art Online

  • Christie’s, in collaboration with 1-54, presented a series of five NFTs by Nigerian crypto-artist Osinachi. Sold in First Open: Post-War and Contemporary, they collectively realised £155,000. The digital artworks associated with the NFTs were on view at Christie’s booth at 1-54, the first time ever that Christie’s has had a physical presence at an art fair

  • ‘1-54: Redefining the Trend – Histories in the Making’: Art historian, critic and curator Christine Eyene curated an exhibition, which explored how new artistic practices from Africa and the diaspora contribute to the definition of present aesthetics, discourses, and creative processes while opening new chapters in the continent’s art history

• The 20^th / 21^st Century: Evening Sale Including Thinking Italian saw a 50% increase in under 40s registered to bid, compared to 2020

• Following the successful format of Christie’s internationally focused evening sales in March and June of 2021, Thinking Italian was presented as a key element of the 20th / 21st Century: Evening Sale, London. All eight lots which were offered sold above estimate including work by Alighiero Boetti, Lucio Fontana and Piero Manzoni

POST-WAR AND CONTEMPORARY ART DAY AND ONLINE SALES

• Christie’s London sold 403 artworks across the Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale, First Open: Post-War and Contemporary Art Online, and No Regrets: The Collectors’ Edition during Frieze Week, achieving an exceptional sell-through rate of 92% by lot

• The combined total realised for the Day and Online Sales was £19,632,275 against a low estimate of £8,983,900. The results reflect the strength of demand across all levels of the market

• The Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale achieved £16,165,750 and was led by Yayoi Kusama’s My Life, which sold for £1,222,500, more than double the estimate

• First Open: Post-War and Contemporary Art Online achieved its strongest result to date, selling 326% of the low estimate

• Artists, gallerists and collectors generously donated works to benefit the children's charity Rays of Sunshine: achieving a total of £2,192,825 with Flora Yukhnovich's Puits d'amour (Wells of Love) selling for £910,500 (estimate: £20,000-30,000)

• A group of 28 drawings by Yves Saint Laurent offered across the Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale and First Open: Post-War and Contemporary Art Online achieved a combined total of £1,559,500. Competitive bidding in the saleroom in London and online delivered above estimate results for all of the Yves Saint Laurent works

LONDON: MODERN BRITISH AND IRISH ART SALES: £21,713,000 / $29,911,466 / €25,680,147

MODERN BRITISH AND IRISH ART EVENING SALE

• Sir Winston Churchill’s The Bridge at Aix-en-Provence, offered at auction for the first time, sold for £1,702,500. This continues the strength of results for Churchill witnessed in March this year

• A group of three paintings by L.S. Lowry demonstrated the power of his industrial landscapes:

• The Mill, Early Morning saw competitive bidding in the room and via the phone, realising £1,582,500, the second highest price of the Modern British and Irish Art Evening Sale while Rising Street also drew competition, selling for £958,500. Viaduct Works, Manchester achieved £500,000 

• In the year that marks the 150th anniversary since the artist’s birth, three paintings by Samuel John Peploe offered in the Evening Sale witnessed spirited bidding with Flowers and Fruit leading the group (£802,500)

• Still life, Apples and Pink Roses sold for £646,500 with Girl in White realising £275,000

• A further five paintings were offered in the day sale on 21 October, led by Paris Plage (£143,750) 

• Barry Flanagan’s Six Foot Leaping Hare on Steel Pyramid doubled pre-sale expectations to sell for £886,500. A second sculpture, Thinker on Rock sold for £958,500

• Eight phone bidders competed for Dame Barbara Hepworth’s Involute 1968, selling for £462,500 (estimate: £120,00-180,000)

• Curved Form with Inner Form (Anima) achieved £437,500

• Three Forms realised £287,500 

• The vibrancy of British Pop Art was represented by:

• Patrick Caulfield’s Corner of the Studio (£375,000)

• Sir Eduardo Paolozzi’s Heart’s Delight, which realised a World Auction Record for the artist: £137,500

• A rediscovered Gerald Laing, Lotus in the Sunset, which featured in the film Evil Knievel, sold for £375,000

• Antony Donaldson’s Four (£125,000)

• Two sculptures by Dame Elisabeth Frink, commissioned by Kirk and Anne Douglas, highlighted the Evening and Day sales, with Lying Down horse II selling online via Christie’s Live™ for £325,000

• Barking Dog also realised £325,000, leading the Modern British and Irish Art Day Sale

MODERN BRITISH AND IRISH ART DAY SALE

• The Modern British and Irish Art Day Sale achieved £6,332,500 / $8,732,518 / €7,485,015, the highest total to date for a Modern British Day Sale, further indication of the strength of the market across all price points

• Sir Peter Blake’s Self Portrait, the first self-portrait by the artist, sold for £287,500 against an estimate of £60,000-80,000

• Sir John Lavery’s The Bay of Tunis, Morning was a further highlight, selling for £250,000 against an estimate of £70,000-100,000

• The Molenick Collection, a focused group of second generation St Ives artists, included:

  • William Scott’s Pear Study (3 Pears) (£162,500)

  • William Scott’s Jug and Pipe (£56,250)

  • John Wells’ Untitled 1948 (£32,500)

• World auction record prices were achieved for Kim Lim’s Untitled (£25,000), Derwent Lees’ Sandhills (£60,000), Antony Micallef’s Untitled (£10,000) and Winston Branch’s Hibiscus in July (£12,500)

• Contemporary artists, including Ian Davenport and David Shrigley, donated works to benefit the children’s charity WellChild, realising a total of £60,625

PARIS FIAC WEEK SALES: €46,223,375 / £39,109,649 / $53,819,919

ART MODERNE

• Gathering works from the most important artists of the 20^th Century, the Art Moderne sale, on 22 October, achieved a total of €11,332,125 | £9,586,380 | $13,178,695, selling 91% by lot and 93% by value, surpassing the presale high estimates

• Leading the sale, Paysage Animé by Fernand Léger, a colorful and playful canvas from a prestigious private Parisian collection, sold for €884,000

• Further highlights included a superb collage by Georges Braque, La Bouteille de Marc, doubling its presale estimate by selling for €500,000, and Clown au chapeau jaune by Bernard Buffet, which realized €500,000

• Hommage à Picasso a rare evening dress by Yves Saint Laurent, was acquired for €112,500, ten times above its presale estimate, and will soon enter the collection of a renowned national museum

PARIS AVANT-GARDE

• The Paris Avant-Garde sale achieved a total of €20,179,250 / £17,500,973 / $23,513,292, selling 83% by lot and 86% by value

• The sale was led by a previously unseen outrenoirby Pierre Soulages entitled Peinture 222 x 222 cm, 25 mars 1990, which doubled its presale estimate to sell for €2,480,000

• The sale was highlighted by the personal collection of Yves Montand, including a Still lifeby Alberto Giacometti (Pommes) which realised €2,180,000, more than double the presale estimate

• Six works by Berthe Morisot were offered with Berthe Morisot et sa fille devant une fenêtre selling above estimate for €437,500, leading the group

• Further highlights included two celebrated animal sculptures by François-Xavier Lalanne, both titled Singe attentif, achieving a combined total of €3,760,000

COLLECTION ALAIN BOURET

• The Collection of Alain Bouret achieved a total of €2,469,875 | £2,469,875| $2,469,875, selling 95% by lot and 99% by value

• A highlight of the sale was Landscapeby Nicolas de Staël, which was sold for €536,000, doubling its presale estimate

• Additional notable results include a still-life by Pablo Picasso, Journal, verre, bouteille, guitare which achieved €218,750, four times its presale estimate. Five works by Jean Fautrier, who was one of Alain and Katherine Bouret’s preferred artists, exceeded their presale estimates and realised a combined total of €542,500 

COLLECTION GÉRARD VALKIER, A LIFETIME JOURNEY WITH ART

• Gerard Valkier : A Lifetime Journey with art totalled €6,480,375 / £5,460,623 / $7,551,095, selling 95% by lot and 99% by value

• The top lot of the collection was Concetto Spaziale, attese by Lucio Fontana, which sold for €836,000

• Further highlights inculuded Autoportrait by Pablo Picasso, which achieved €644,000 against an estimate of €200,000/300,000, and Untitled (Horizontal Stripes; Lavender; White, Orange) by Robert Motherwell, which sold for €500,000

L’ART À FLEUR DE PEAU, A COLLECTOR’S JOURNEY

• On 13 and 15 October, between Christie’s salerooms in Paris and London respectively, L’Art à Fleur de Peau : Parcours d’une Collectionneusetotalled €12,594,568 / £10,617,226 / $14,680,438, selling 98% by lot and 100% by value

• The collection was led by David Hockney’s Guest House Garden, which sold in London for £5,800,000 as part of the 20^th / 21^st Century: Evening Sale Including Thinking Italian

Three World Auction Records were set for the artists Guy Ferrer’s La Pourvoyeuse € 37,500 | Gilles Aillaud’s Grande mer bleue - € 200,000 | Georges Jeanclos’ La Toupie - € 30,000