Gustav Klimt – Blumenwiese (Blooming Meadow) sold for $86.9 million in November
Sotheby’s announced projected consolidated sales of $7.0 billion for 2025, a 17% increase on 2024. Auction sales rose 26% year-over-year to $5.7 billion, with sales accelerating significantly in the second half of the year, up 59% versus the second half of 2024. Private sales reached $1.2 billion, down slightly from the prior year. Both the Global Fine Art and Luxury categories posted strong gains, with Global Fine Art sales increasing 15% to $4.3 billion and Luxury sales up 22% to $2.7 billion.
The company sold the most valuable collection of the year for the sixth time in the last seven years – the Leonard A. Lauder Collection – and sold seven of the year’s top ten auction works globally. The company inaugurated its new global headquarters at the Breuer with six white-glove (100% sold) sales totaling $1.17 billion, including the highest total for Modern art sold in one week at Sotheby’s ($843 million), the highest value work of art ever sold at Sotheby’s (Gustav Klimt’s Bildnis Elisabeth Lederer (Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer) for $236.4 million) and the largest Contemporary Day sale ever.
Sotheby’s executed its most valuable single-owner sale ever staged by Sotheby’s in London and in Europe with Pauline Karpidas: The London Collection realising a combined total of $137 million.
Arnout Tholinx, Inspector (circa 1656) made £3.1 million in December, a new world record for a Rembrandt print.
With projected global sales of $6.2 billion in 2025 Christie’s is ending the year on a high note. Auction sales accounted for $4.7 billion (up 8%), private sales for $1.5 billion according to figures released today by Christie’s. No less than 17 works sold privately for more that $15 million and the top three works sold by Christie’s this year were sold privately.
“The energy has returned to the saleroom, online, and across the market. We’ve seen renewed confidence worldwide, reflected in these outstanding results. Our selling performance has remained consistently strong throughout the year: a solid first half followed by an even more competitive second half, delivering exceptional, market-leading outcomes for our clients” said Bonnie Brennan, Christie’s ceo.
The Americas amounted for 41% of sales, EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) 36% and Asia Pacific for 23%.
Haystacks (c1930) by Sir William Rothenstein UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
Haystacks by Sir William Rothenstein (€5,000-€7,000), probably painted around 1930 when he was principal at the Royal College of Art, will lead the At Home online sale at Adam’s in Dublin on December 17. Like his close associate Orpen, Rothenstein was an official war artist. This work was in the collection of the late Bruce Arnold whose Mirror to an Age published in 1991 is one of the the foremost biographies of Orpen.
Everyone, everywhere always needs something for the home. This sale offers no less than 496 lots of art, furniture, silver, delft, porcelain, lighting, brass, rugs, mirrors and a variety of collectibles. From Irish silver tea and coffee services to a 19th century gilt overmantle mirror, a pair of mahogany framed Georgian style humpback couches and a set of brass wall sconces to Oriental carpets, a c1913 Louis Vuitton travel trunk, a 20th century Spanish silver Egyptians and Nubians chess set and a pair of 19th century Italian decorative panels the auction delivers no shortage of lots to let the imagination soar.
One of a pair of Georgian style couches UPDATE: THE PAIR MADE 6,000 AT HAMMER
There are portrait miniatures, an Irish yew and elmwood Windsor armchair, a French giltwood pier mirror, a Georgian wingback armchair, a slope front walnut and satinwood inlaid bureau, a pair of Crown Derby porcelain peacocks, various selections of cutlery and silver condiments and a Chinese ebonised and gilt eight leaf dividing screen to choose from too.
One of the more expensively estimated lots is a set of four portrait prints after Sir John Lavery published c1922 by Hartnell and Co., Dublin. The subjects, with artists proof blindstamp to the lower margin and manuscript inked signature by Lavery, are Arthur Griffith, Cardinal Logue, Eamonn J Duggan and Archbishop Mannix. The estimate is €4,000-€6,000.
A Spanish Egyptians and Nubians chess set UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR 4,200
The catalogue cover lot is a striking late 19th century oil on canvas of Breton Women in Woodland by an unknown artist. A fine Louis Quinz style ormolu and kingwood marquetry bureau plat with leather top, loop handled drawers complete with brass sabot feet to protect the lowest part of the leg is estimated at €800-€1,200. A Louis Quinz style ormolu mounted mahogany longcase clock has an estimate of €1,500-€2,500.
The estimate is just €300-€500 for a pair of sang de boeuf porcelain vases, fitted as lamps but without shades. Furniture represents good value and there is a selection of small tables and chairs. A Victorian walnut kidney shaped writing table (€600-€1,000), a Sheraton Revival inlaid satinwood side cabinet (€1,000-€2,000), a Georgian brass mounted side cabinet (€400-€600) and an Irish George III longcase clock with brass dial by Gregory Upington, Cork (€1,000-€2,000) offer an indication of the value to be found. The auction is now on view at Adam’s on St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin.
A Louis Quinz style bureau plat. UPDATE: THIS MADE 850 AT HAMMER.
River Run Poppies by Kenneth Webb at Sheppards. UPDATE: THIS MADE 15,000 AT HAMMER
Old favourites and new names combine to make an interesting selection at art sales by Sheppards in Durrow, de Veres in Dublin and the newly formed Lot 100 which is based in Lismore in the coming week.
An arresting view of River Run Poppies by Kenneth Webb is the catalogue cover lot for Sheppard’s evening sale of Irish and international art on December 11. Choices here range from Donald Teskey’s take on Kilkee, a dramatic abstract composition by the Norwegian artist Thorvald Hellesen, an image of Samuel Beckett by Louis le Brocquy and houses by Mary Lou, a self taught painter from the Glens of Antrim.
Abstract Composition by Thorvald Hellesen at Sheppards. UPDATE: THIS MADE 26,000 AT HAMMER
Her contribution is an oil on board of a village in the west of Ireland in a bold, graphic style against a mountainous backdrop. A vibrant studio still life by Gladys MacCabe reflects a modernist style while a pen and ink drawing by Sir William Orpen was once in the collection of Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones. A Walled off Hotel box set by Banksy, a lithograph of Queen Beatrix from the Reigning Queen series by Andy Warhol, a screenprint of birdflight by Braque and a signed etching by Renoir of a seated bather are among the international lots on offer. The sale is on view in Durrow and the catalogue is online.
An Italian tinted mirror and tiered hall table at de Veres. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
The Christmas art and furniture online auction at de Veres on December 10 at 2 pm is headed by The Children of Lir, an oil on board by Patrick Collins. Artists in the sale include Peter Collis, Arthur Armstrong, William Carron, Yvonne Moore, Felim Egan, Mark Francis, Anne King Harman,Markey Robinson, Gerard Dillon and Patrick Scott.
There is a range of 20th century design furniture and period pieces by Hicks including a Georgian style semi-elliptical side table, a set of Dutch 18th century style dining chairs and a pair of compartmental wall mirrors. An Italian tinted and mirrored hall table and a pair of 1970’s black leather Swedish easy chairs cater for a contrasting taste in furniture.
An original and vintage portrait of Fellini’s Amarcord at Lot 100. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
A large scale, rare vintage poster for Federico Fellini’s Amarcord is among the highly collectible lots at the online auction by Lot 100 which runs until next Tuesday (December 9). Amarcord is set in his hometown of Rimini in the 1930’s and the extraordinary characters that surrounded him. Fellini commissioned the Italian painter Giuliano Geleng to create a portrait of some of the people and events that shaped his young life in this film classic.
There is art by Eithne Jordan, Joan Miro, Damien Hirst, Richard Long, Patrick Scott and a photographic portrait of Martin McDonagh by Steve Pyke in an eclectic selection that can be seen online and is on view this weekend in Lismore.
Michael Angelo Hayes (1820-1877) – The Kildare Hunt 1858. UPDATE: THIS MADE 50,000 AT HAMMER
An 1858 painting of the Kildare Hunt by Michael Angelo Hayes will lead Fonsie Mealy’s winter fine art and antique sale in Castlecomer on December 3 and 4. Estimated at €40,000-€60,000 it is part of a range of items celebrating our equestrian heritage including the Tralee Races Cup, the Blennerhassett Plate and the Kilkenny Hunt Cup.
The Hayes painting is a large group portrait outside Bishopscourt House near Straffan, Co. Kildare. It depicts the Earl of Clonmel, Lord Cloncurry, the Marquis of Drogheda, Thomas Connolly, Captain Colthurst, Sir John Power and many more identifiable figures.
More than 1,000 lots of antique furniture, art and collectibles are to be auctioned. There is a Faberge link gold bracelet, a selection of gold coins, a 19th century dining table on four pods, a Peel P50 one person commuter car from the early 1960’s, a 1963 Morris Minor, a pair of French Empire four branch candelabra, a specimen marble table and a silver ladle by Samuel Johns, Limerick among the leading lots. The catalogue is online.
A vintage Peel P50 one person commuter car. UPDATE: THIS MADE 8,000 AT HAMMER
Two mid-19th century Indian chairs from Elveden Hall, Suffolk
These mid-19th century Indian chairs from Elveden Hall in Suffolk – former home of India’s last Sikh Maharajah, Duleep Singh (1838-1893) – date from his period at the house. Crafted in Bombay in c. 1850 they remained at Elvedon after his death, when ownership changed to the Guinness brewing family. Elveden Hall was purchased by Edward Cecil Guinness, 1st Earl of Iveagh (1847-1927). At auction for the first time in over 40 years the chairs will be offered in London by Olympia Auctions on November 26 with an estimate of £8,000-£12,000. UPDATE: THESE SOLD FOR £8,000
Contents from the Old Head of Kinsale golf links clubhouse will be auctioned online without reserve by O’Donovan’s of Newcastlewest, on November 29 at 10 am. Many of the wrought iron tables and chairs, complete with a fossilised ammonite design, were custom made and imported from California in the 1990’s. There are 50 vintage copper ships lanterns, brass portholes, imported large alabaster lamps, streetlamps, framed pictures, candleabra and even a lobster tank. The catalogue with around 200 lots is online. Pictured here is the Lusitania bar from the clubhouse.
An early Fang reliquary. UPDATE: THIS MADE 34,000 AT HAMMER
An early Fang reliquary figure from early 19th century Gabon is, at €30,000-€50,000, the most expensively estimated lot at Sheppards two day sale in Durrow on November 25 and 26. More than 1,200 lots of fine and decorative art, silver, antique furniture and sculpture from Irish and international collections will come under the hammer.
Among them are a 15th century carved oak altarpiece, a landscape by James Arthur O’Connor, exceptional 18th century Dublin and London silver, a pair of Roman marble urns, a French clock garniture and a 19th century French ormolu perpetual calendar. Viewing is underway in Durrow and the catalogue is online.
A Georgian breakfront four door bookcase is among the leading lots at Marshs sale in Cork on November 29. A Regency Cork card table, a set of ten brass inlaid Regency Cork dining chairs, a Georgian sideboard, a French ebonised and gilt drawing room suite and a Regency card table are feature furniture lots. There is a large private collection of Irish and English silver along with dinner and tea services. The sale will be on view from November 26 and the catalogue is online.
19th century ormolu mounted marquetry and porcelain inlaid credenza at Sheppards. UPDATE: THIS MADE €3,800 AT HAMMER
Early Victorian fitted mahogany workbox UPDATE: THIS MADE 600 AT HAMMER
This quality early Victorian workbox is at Reilly’s live auction in Prosperous, Co. Kildare on November 22. The estimate is €900-€1,100. The auction of 447 lots will include contents from several houses and features rugs, mirrors, a selection of antique furniture, art and collectibles. The catalogue is online.
A 15th century Northern European altarpiece is among the highlights at Sheppards sale in Durrow on November 25 and 26. More than 1,200 lots of fine and decorative art, silver, furniture and sculpture drawn from Irish and international collections will be on offer including a Qing Dynasty silk wall hanging from Abbeyleix House. The altarpiece is estimated at €25,000-€45,000.
