Tobias Meyer on the rostrum in New York last night.
Alberto Giacometti’s Grande tête mince (Grande tête de Diego) sold for $50,005,000 to become the top lot at Sotheby’s evening sale of Impressionist and Modern Art in New York last night. The sale brought in $290 million, the second highest total in the category in Sotheby’s history. The May 2012 auction in which Edvard Munch’s The Scream set a new world auction record for any work of art at $119.9 million was the highest. Last night there was record levels of participation from Asia and Latin America.
The sell-through rate of 81.2% by lot marks the fourth consecutive evening sale of Impressionist & Modern Art at Sotheby’s worldwide with a sell-through rate over 80%. 94.2% of sold works brought prices at or above their estimates. Works by Pablo Picasso brought exceptional prices throughout the night, led by Tête de femme, his 1935 portrait of Marie-Thérèse Walter which made $39,925,000 over a high estimate of $30 million. Mousquetaire à la pipe set a new auction record for a late work by the artist at $30,965,000.
The private collection Futur! Masterworks of the Avant-Garde totaled $64.3 million, led by Italian Futurist Giacomo Balla’s Automobile in corsa which made $11,477,000, a new auction record for the artist. Strong prices for Impressionist works were led by Claude Monet’s Glaçons, effet blanc which made $16,125,000. Records were set for Gustave Courbet, Man Ray, Francis Picabia, Giacomo Balla and Jean Arp. Five works sold for more than $10 million.
(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for October 3, 2013)