KEES VAN DONGEN AND JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT LED THE SEASON, EACH REALISING OVER £10 MILLION

STRONG SELL THROUGH RATES OF 85% BY LOT AND 89% BY VALUE ACROSS THE EVENING

9 RECORDS SET AS CHRISTIE’S CELEBRATED THE CREATIVE IMPACT AND LEGACY OF LONDON AS A GLOBAL ART CAPITAL

THIS IS LONDON. EVERCHANGING. FOREVER CAPTIVATING.

Kees van Dongen, La Quiétude (1918, price realised £10,775,000)

Giovanna Bertazzoni, Vice Chairman, 20^th / 21^st Century Art Department, Christie’s: “The results this evening reflect the enduring strength of London at this time. As we marked 20 years of Frieze London, Christie’s convened collectors from across the globe to our saleroom, with spirited bidding on works that spanned antiquities to contemporary art. Our sales were strategically put together to reflect the breadth and diversity of the London market.”

• Kees van Dongen led the season at Christie’s, realising a price of £10,775,000 for La Quiétude

• Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Future Sciences Versus the Man (1982) achieved the second highest price this evening, selling for £10,430,000

• The 20^th/ 21^st Century: London Evening Sale realised a total of £44,691,420 / €51,618,590 / $54,523,532, selling 88% by lot and 89% by value

• Christie’s continues to lead the market for prestigious private collections with the first in a series of sales dedicated to the scholarly vision of Sam Josefowitz. Masterpieces from the Collection of Sam Josefowitz: A Lifetime of Discovery and Scholarship realised a total of £51,844,800 / $63,250,656 / €59,880,744 setting records for Félix Vallotton, Akseli Gallen-Kallela and Aristide Maillol (record for a painting by the artist)   

• The creative impact and legacy of pioneering British artists was represented throughout the 20^th/ 21^stCentury: London Evening Sale with a new market benchmark for Paula Rego. Further records were achieved for British artists Pam Evelyn and Sahara Longe:

• Paula Rego’s masterpiece Dancing Ostriches from Walt Disney’s ‘Fantasia’ (1995) set a new benchmark for the artist’s market at auction, realising a new world auction record price of £3,065,000.

• Offered at auction for the first time by Christie’s, Pam Evelyn’s Worked on Earth (2020) achieved a new world auction record for the artist (£113,400).

• Sahara Longe’s Party Scenesold for a world auction record price of £176,400 against an estimate of £40,000-60,000

• Peter Doig’s House of Pictures (Haus der Bilder)was a highlight of the 20^th/ 21^st Century: London Evening Sale, selling for £6,060,000

• Three further records were set during Masterpieces from the Collection of Sam Josefowitz: A Lifetime of Discovery:

• Félix Vallotton‘s Cinq heures set a world auction record for the artist (£3,670,000)

• Aristide Maillol’s Portrait de Mademoiselle Jeanne Faraill(£2,399,500), record for a painting by the artist

• Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Autumn - Five Crosses: A preliminary work for the fresco in the Jusélius Mausoleum(£1,008,000)

• Additional highlights reflect the breadth and diversity of Sam Josefowitz’s unerring eye:

• Diego Giacometti, La console ‘Hommage à Böcklin’ (£5,122,000)

• A Wood Sculpture of a Standing Jizo Bosatsu (Bodhisattva Kshitigarbha) (£3,670,000)

• Albrecht Dürer, Rhinoceros (£604,800)

• An Assyrian Gypsum Relief of a Winged Genius (£3,912,000)

• Kees van Dongen, Nuages, ou Guus van Dongen et sa Fille Dolly portées aux Nues(£2,460,000)

• Salvo’s Il giorno fu pieno di lampi la sera verranno le stelle (The day was full of lightning in the evening stars will come out)was the first work by the artist to be offered in a Christie’s Evening Sale. Its vibrant landscape attracted 22 bidders competing to deliver a world auction record price of £693,000 against an estimate of £80,000-120,000

• An additional record was achieved for Winston Branch’s The Magic is in You (£239,400)

• London continues to provide an international platform for new artists at auction and this season included: Jonathan Gardner’s Black Cherrie’s (£151,200) and Honor Titus, Clay Court(£66,520)

• This year, Christie’s and the Museum of West African Art (MOWAA) are collaborating to raise funds for MOWAA initiatives including their presentation at La Biennale di Venezia, 2024 and the 20-acre Creative District in Benin City, including the Rainforest Gallery. 

• Tunji Adeniyi-JonesReverse Dive Red sold for £75,600

• Further works will be offered in the Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale on 14 October and in First Open: Post-War and Contemporary Art Online, which remains open for bidding until 17 October

• Contemporary African Art has been a seminal element of the Frieze Week programme at Christie’s since the ongoing collaboration with 1-54 was launched in 2020

• Philanthropy continues at the heart of Christie’s sales programmes. This season, Alvaro Barrington’s Welcome(2023) sold for a record price of £63,000

• Additional works by Federico Herrero, Sir Michael Craig-Martin and Bridget Riley will be offered in the Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale on 14 October

• This is Everchanging. Forever Captivating.

This October, Christie’s celebrates ‘This is London’, reflecting the unique energy of the British capital, aligning with the 20^th anniversary of Frieze London. London is, and always has been, a city of change, evolution, inclusion, dynamism, tradition and modernity. Christie’s explores the infinite ways artists draw inspiration from the everchanging, yet forever captivating London, and at the heart of this is our 20/21 sale series

RECAPPING THE STATS

The 20^th / 21^st Century: London Evening Sale

Total Realised £44,691,420 / €51,618,590 / $54,523,532

• Lots offered: 52

• Lots sold: 45

• Sell through rates of: 88% by lot / 89% by value

• Top ten

Masterpieces from the Collection of Sam Josefowitz: A Lifetime of Discovery and Scholarship

Total Realised £51,844,800 /  €59,880,744 / $63,250,656

• Lots offered: 38

• Lots sold: 31

• Sell through rates of: 82% by lot / 90% by value

• Top ten

For further commentary on the sale, please view Giovanna Bertazzoni, Vice Chairman, 20^th / 21^st Century Art Department, Keith Gill, Head of Impressionist and Modern Art, London and Tessa Lord, Acting Interim Head of Post-War and Contemporary Art, London discussing the highlights in the post-sale press conference link here.

To read more about the results of the evening sales, view the feature on christies.com.

Sales continue with the Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale on 14 October and First Open: Post-War and Contemporary Art Online, which remains open for bidding until 17 October.