POST-WAR & CONTEMPORARY ART DAY SALE TOTALS $66,301,630
NEW YORK – Christie’s New York Fall Marquee Week of sales continued Friday, November 10, 2023 with the Post-War & Contemporary Art Day Sale, building on the success of Thursday night’s 20th Century Evening Sale. The energy in the room was palpable, with spirited participation on the phone, in the room, and online. In total, the sale achieved $66,301,630 selling 85% by lot, 88% by value, and 102% hammer against low estimate, bringing the running total of the week to $814,599,430.
The top lot of the sale was Andy Warhol’s Endangered Species, which surpassed its high estimate to sell for $3,438,000. This was followed by Jean Michel Basquiat’s Untitled, which achieved $3,075,000 and Hans Hofmann’s First Blaze of the Rising Sun, which made $3,075,000, three times its low estimate. The fourth highest price was set by Fernando Botero’s Parrot which made $1,865,000—more than nine times its low estimate of $200,000. Christie’s set a new benchmark for the iconic Colombian artist who passed away earlier this year, with a new auction record for The Musicians selling for $5,132,000 in Thursday’s 20th Century Evening sale.
Notable prices also came for George Condo’s The Psychoanalytic Puppeteer Losing His Mind, selling for $1,197,000, nearly four times its low estimate, and Richard Estes’ Jone’s Diner selling for $907,200 against a low estimate of $300,000.
The sale set four new artist records with Jason Rhoades’ Three-Wheel Waggon-Wheel Chandelier selling for $1,008,000, Gary Simmons’ 20-20 Fall achieving $119,700, Mai Anh’s Solar Eclipse realizing $17,640 and Geoffrey Williams’ Archipelago #42 achieving $4,410. A new benchmark was set for Robert Indiana with LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides) setting the highest price for the sculpture in the 36x36x18 inch scale at $957,600.
