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EDOUARD MANET, Le Printemps, oil on canvas, 1881, $25-35million. Courtesy Christie’s Images Ltd., 2014.

Edouard Manet’s Le Printemps brought a new world record at Christie’s Impressionist and Modern evening sale in New York last night when it sold for $65 million. It had been estimated at $25-30 million.  The work has been on loan to the National Gallery of Art in Washington for the past 20 years.  The previous record for a Manet was $33 million which was paid for a self portrait by the artist at Sotheby’s in London in 2010.  The 40 lot sale brought in a total of 165,635,000.

Stele III by Alberto Giacometti made $9.9 million, Joan Miro’s Tuilerie a Mont-Roig made $8.67 million, Renoir’s Le Jeune Fille  au cygnet ou la jeune fille au heron  made $5.7 million, Guitare by Pablo Picasso made $5.3 million and Nu Assis, Fond Bleu by Henri Matisse sold for $5.4 million.  While the record price for Manet drove the evening’s headlines, the sale was also notable for consistently high sell-through rates at the middle market level, between $500,000 and $5 million. For example, works priced in the $1-2 million range were 92% sold by lot.  Similarly, works priced in the $2-5 million range were 93% sold by lot. Together, these impressive rates are an indication that collectors are seeking high-quality Impressionist and Modern art across a broad spectrum of prices.

Christie’s confirmed later that the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles is the new owner of Le Printemps.

(See posts on antiquesandartireland.com for October 20 and August 1, 2014)

Led by two icons of modern sculpture Sotheby’s Impressionist and Modern Art sale totalled $422.1 million in New York last night.  The highest result for any auction in Sotheby’s history was led by Giacometti’s Chariot which achieved $101 million and Modigliani’s Tete which made $70.7 million, a new auction record for the artist.  Van Gogh’s Still Life, Vase with Daisies and Poppies sold for $61.8 million.  Bidders from 40 countries registered for the sale, with the highest proportion from the US, Europe and Asia, the new home for the Van Gogh still life.

A total of 12 sculptures brought in $191 million.    Three works by Claude Monet totalled $61.9 million led by  Alice Hoschedé au jardin which sold for $33.7 million.

Simon Shaw, Co-Head of Sotheby’s Worldwide Impressionist & Modern Art Department, commented: “Tonight’s historic results bookend an exceptional year for Impressionist & Modern Art at Sotheby’s – our fourth consecutive year as leaders in this market. We opened this February with our best-ever sale in London, and tonight set a new benchmark for any auction in the Company’s 270-year history.”

This was the second highest price for a Giacometti sculpture. His L’homme qui march I sold for $104.3 million at Sotheby’s in London in February 2010.

(See posts on antiquesandartireland.com for October 28 and October 22, 2014).

Alberto Giacometti’s Legendary
CHARIOT

Amedeo Modigliani’s Totemic Goddess
TÊTE

Vincent van Gogh’s
STILL LIFE, VASE WITH DAISIES AND POPPIES

A total of 235 lots are listed on the catalogue for Dolan’s Irish art and antiques auction at Castletroy Park Hotel in Limerick on November 9.  The catalogue is online. Here is a small selection:

Kenneth Webb RWA FRSA ARUA
THE LILY POND (1,400-1,800).  UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

John Schwatschke
RUSH HOUR (500-800).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 550

Henry Morgan
ATLANTIC COAST (300-500).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 400

Robert Egginton
CARAGH RIVER AT BLACKSTONES
BRIDGE, CO KERRY (800-1,200).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,140

Brian Ballard – Sunflowers (1,400-1,600).  UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

More than 300 lots feature in Morgan O’Driscoll’s online auction of Irish art.  It runs until November 10 at 6.30 p.m.  The catalogue is on-line. Here is a small selection:

John Minihan’s portrait photograph of poet W.H. Auden from 1972 (300-400).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 360

Kenneth Webb RWA FRSA RUA (b.1927)
Lily Pond (3,000-4,000).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,800

Liam O’Neill (b.1954)
Brendan Behan (2,500-3,500).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,600

Peter Collis RHA (1929-2012)
Still Life – Fruit and Table Top (2,000-3,000).   UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,600

Daniel O’Neill (1920-1974)
Waves (1,500-2,500).  UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,500

THE 82 lots at Christie’s most ambitious yet evening sale of Post-War and Contemporary art in New York on November 12 carry a combined estimate of $600,000,000.  An unprecedented selection of paintings, sculpture and photographs, illuminate the extraordinary talent and uncompromising vision of some of the most influential artists of our time. Masterworks by Andy Warhol, Franz Kline, Willem de Kooning, Jeff Koons, Martin Kippenberger, Cindy Sherman and many others who explore powerful ideas—of truth, provocation, beauty, and life itself—that reached their creative apotheosis in art. The auction reflects the current demand from new and seasoned International collectors’s  for the  best of the best, with prestigious provenances, and exceptional museum exhibition history.  Almost half of the works featured in the sale come fresh to the market, having remained in private collections for a decade or more, while nearly 62% of the works have been featured in major museum exhibitions.  My personal favourite from among them is the Kline.  You can click on the following link to watch an interesting video about Kline’s King Oliver.

https://player.ooyala.com/iframe.html?ec

Franz Kline (1910-1962)
King Oliver – 1958 ($25-35 million). Courtesy Christie’s Images Ltd., 2014. UPDATE: IT MADE $26,485,000

Andy Warhol (1928-1987)
Four Marlons 1966 – in the region of $60 million. Courtesy Christie’s Images Ltd., 2014  UPDATE: IT MADE $69,605,000

Andy Warhol (1928-1987)
Triple Elvis [Ferus Type] 1963 – estimate in the region of $60 million. Courtesy Christie’s Images Ltd., 2014  UPDATE: IT MADE $81,925,000