CHRISTIE'S WEEK OF LONDON AUCTIONS REALISED £224 MILLION ($440 MILLION / €298 MILLION)
· 2nd Highest ever total for a week of art sales in Europe
· Francis Bacon triptych sold for £26.3 million / $51.7 million – the highest price for a Post-War work of art sold in Europe
· 41 lots sold for over £1million / 74 for over $1 million
· 23 artist records established
Christie's week of Impressionist and Modern Art and Post-War and Contemporary Art auctions in London concluded during the first week of February 2008 having realised £224,052,600 / $440,224,719 / €298,239,440, the second highest total for any week of art sales in Europe.
Jussi Pylkkänen,President of Christie's, Europe said: "This week's results at Christie's illustrated the continuing confidence of the international art market. This was the third successive series of auctions at Christie's London to realise over £200 million, following the corresponding sales weeks in February and June 2007. This week's results, together with the significant level of American and international bidding, consolidate London's position as a leading hub of the international art market. The sale of Francis Bacon's Triptych for £26.3 million represented a landmark moment for London,establishing a record price for any Post-War work of art sold at auction in Europe. We saw a particularly strong appetite for high caliber works from private collections, which resulted in exceptional results for Francis Bacon,Pablo Picasso, Lucio Fontana, Gerhard Richter, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Egon Schiele. Christie's has secured several significant Impressionist and 20thcentury paintings for our major auctions in May and June in New York and London, and we look forward to an exciting season ahead."
The Impressionist& Modern Art EveningSale including The Art of the Surreal on 4 February realised £105,372,000 ($207,372,096 /€139,617,900). The top lot of the sale was Femme au chapeau, 1938, byPablo Picasso that sold for £5,732,500 ($11,281,560/€7,595,563). Buyer activity at the auction was (by lot) 83% Europe including the United Kingdom, 15%Americas and 2% Asia.
The evening sale of Post-Warand Contemporary Art on 6 February realised a totalof £72,930,500 ($143,089,641/€97,581,009). The top lot was Triptych 1974-77 by Francis Bacon (1909-1992) which sold for £26.3million ($51.7 million/€35.2 million), becoming the most expensive work of artever sold at Christie's in London and the most valuable Post-War andContemporary work sold in Europe. The buyer breakdown was (by lot): 57%European including UK; 43% Americas.
At this week's auctions, 41 lots sold for over £1million / 74 for over $1 million and 23 new artist records were establishedincluding those for Lucio Fontana, Gerhard Richter, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff andKees van Dongen.
TOP FIVE PRICES OF THE WEEK
- Francis Bacon (1909-1992), Triptych 1974-77 £26,340,500 (51,680,061 / €35,243,589)
- Gerhard Richter (b. 1932), Zwei Liebespaare, 1966 £7,300,500 ($14,323,581/€9,768,069)
- Lucio Fontana (1899-1968), Concetto spaziale, Attesa £6,740,500 ($13,224,861/€9,018,789)
- Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988), Palm Springs Jump, 1982 £6,516,500 ($12,785,373/€8,719,077)
- Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Femme au chapeau, 1938 £5,732,500 ($11,281,560/€7,595,563)
The individual sale totals were as follows:
Monday,4 February Impressionist and ModernArt Evening Sale £105,372,000 $207,372,096
Tuesday, 5 February Impressionist and Modern Art Day Sale £12,711,425 $25,028,796
Tuesday, 5 February Impressionist and Modern Works on Paper £8,502,900 $16,742,210
Wednesday, 6 February Post War and Contemporary Art Evening Sale £72,930,500 $143,089,641
Thursday, 7 February The Collection of R.B. Kitaj £6,218,400 $12,163,190
Thursday, 7 February Post War and Contemporary Art Day Sale £18,317,375 $35,828,786
TOTAL: £224,052,600 $440,224,719
In total, new auctionrecord prices were set for 23 artists during this week's sales:
Impressionist and ModernArt- Kees Van Dongen, Gabriele Münter, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Max Ernst (painting),Ossip Zadkine, Natalia Goncharova (work on paper), Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (sculpture), Rudolf Schlichter (work on paper), Lyonel Feininger (work on paper).
Post War and ContemporaryArt –Gerhard Richter, Lucio Fontana, Bridget Riley, Paula Rego, R. B. Kitaj, Roy Lichtenstein (collage), Lucian Freud (work on paper), Frank Auerbach (work on paper), Enzo Cucchi (collage), Louise Lawler, Wangechi Mutu, Jack Pierson, WimDelvoye, Marc Quinn (Painting)
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