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Mark Rothko’s N0. 36 (Black Stripe) will lead Christie’s Post War and Contemporary Art evening sale in New York on May 13.  The 1958 work is from the collection of the Museum Frieder Burda in Baden-Baden – one of Europe’s most important and prestigious private museums for Modernism and Contemporary art. With a signature concordance of three shimmering rectangles of directly contrasting color asserting themselves against a luminescent red ground, No. 36 (Black Stripe) is a classic example of Rothko’s mature style of painting.

It was painted when he was engaged with the series of murals for the Four Seasons Restaurant in the Seagram building in Manhattan (now known as The Rothko Room at Tate Modern in London).  No. 36 (Black Stripe) exemplifies this extraordinary moment in the artist’s life and career. Acquired by Frieder Burda over thirty years ago it has never appeared at auction, but featured prominently in every major museum exhibitions devoted to the artist.  These includes exhibitions at the Tate Gallery in London, the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, The National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sidney and the seminal retrospective at the Fondation Beyeler, in 2001. It is stimated $30-50 million.

Maurizio Cattelan, Untitled, 1999  UPDATE: IT MADE £425,000

A provocative work by Italian artist Maurizio Catalan listing every time the England team has lost comes up as part of Sotheby’s Bear Witness sale in London on March 10. The artist said it talks about pride, missed opportunities and death. Etched into black granite, like an epitaph on a memorial, is every occasion the England football team has lost a game.  Stretching from Scotland’s 2-1 defeat of England in Glasgow in 1874 to Romania’s 2-1 victory at the 1998 World Cup, this monumental work of art charts the many ignominious moments the national team has suffered over the years. Cattelan’s other well-known works include La Nona Ora (The Ninth Hour) which depicts Pope John Paul II being struck down by a meteorite.

The football monument was first exhibited in London in 1999 and its sale at Sotheby’s follows England’s worst ever performance at a football World Cup in 2014 (including losses to Italy and Uruguay). It is estimated at £400,000-600,000.

Lot 31: Jack Butler Yeats RHA, 1871-1957 THE BANG THE DOOR BOYS (1944). )60,000-80,000).

In Dublin de Veres has opened a new auction room and gallery space at 35 Kildare St. This intimate and contemporary environment will show selected artworks and 20th century design furniture.

Their upcoming Irish art auction on March 24 will showcase this new space.  It includes 92 lots of Irish art in a carefully selected sale with works by artists including Walter Osborne, Jack Yeats, William Conor, Colin Middleton and Roderic O’Conor.  The catalogue for this sale is now available at de Veres.

Venice, Le Grand Canal by Monet sold for £23.7 million.

Worldwide auction sales at Sotheby’s reached $6.1 billion dollars in 2014, the highest total ever.  One third of buyers were new to Sotheby’s and accounted for almost one fifth of sales according to results released today.  Greater Chinese clients purchased more than $1 billion across sales rooms. There were record totals in 14 categories including Contemporary art ($1.7 billion, up 20.3%); Impressionist and Modern art ($1.4 billion, up 26.7%); jewellery ($602.5 million, up13.8%) and watches ($107.2 million, up 10.9%).

Dramatic growth in online bidding and buying is reported. Last year there were nearly 25% more online bidders than in 2013 and ten lots sold for $500,000 to online bidders.  There was an increase of nearly 20% in new bidders online.

In 2015 so far there has been a 20% increase year on year of lots sold for over $10 million, a 12% increase in global participation, a 19% increase in Chinese buyers and one million hits on Sotheby’s digital productions in February. The top art lot of the February London auctions was Claude Monet’s Venice, Le Grand Canal which sold for £23.7 million.

Asian art will come under the hammer on the final day of Sheppards three day sale in Durrow, Co. Laois on Thursday, March 5.   Lots 1201 to 1394 comprise a variety of  vases, bowls, dishes, censors, cups and carvings.  The catalogue is online.  Here is a small selection: (See post on antiquesandartireland.com for February 23, 2015).

Chinese Republican Period polychrome brush pot (2,500-3,500).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,600

Qing period famille verte vase (3,000-5,000).  UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR 4,000

Qing period blue and white vase (1,500-2,500).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,600

18th century Qianlong jade duck and lotus (1.500-2,500)  UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

Large Chinese famille verte urn and cover (5,000-8,000).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 4,500

Large 19th century Cantonese famille rose bowl (1,000-1,500).  UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR 850