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Sotheby's evening sale of contemporary art held on May 12, 2015 in New York realized $379.7 million, well over the presale expectation of upwards of $320 million but failed to register impressive prices with 55 lots out of 63 sold.

Sotheby's total was far from matching the 705,9 million USD feched by Christie's the previous day when two mythic world record prices were set for Picasso and Alberto Giacometti.

Still, a new record was set at 29,9 million USD for Christopher Wool's massive 1990 enamel on aluminum work entitled, Riot, surpassing Christie's November 2013 record for Apocalypse Now (1988),  at 26.5 million USD.

Sigmar Polke's painting titled Jungle (1967) sold for 24 million USD (exclusive of costs), tripling the previous 9.2 million for the artist record.

Other records were for artists Danh Vō, Thomas Struth and Helen Frankenthaler but bidders were generally shy for other lots especially for Roy Lichtenstein's "The Ring" (Engagement 1962) expected at 50 million USD which sold under its estimate for 41.7 million USD inclusive of costs, an indication that Sotheby's may have lost money since the work carried a guarantee for its consignor.

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Mark Rothko's painting "Untitled" (Yellow and Blue) (1954), which had an estimate of $40–60 million only fetched 46.45 million USD inclusive of premiums as a result of a lack of competition.

Gerhard Richter's Abstraktes Bild(1992), which carried an unpublished estimate in the region of $30 million only sold for 28.25 million USD, still a better price than the 11.3 million paid for it at Sotheby's in November 2010 while it was previously sold by Christie's for 1.2 million in May 2005.

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