BlogDiary
Youthful Oscar Wilde’s witty Q&A goes under the hammer at Sotheby’s
NewsArt market
Sotheby's racks up $2.5bn of sales so far this year—down 26% on 2019
Value of private sales at auction house remain around the same as last year at $575m but number of online auctions more than doubles
NewsArt market
Restituted Renaissance battle scene highlight of Sotheby’s pick-and-mix £150m evening sale
Six works were withdrawn by nervy vendors just before the start but Rembrandt to Richter sale still totalled nearly £150m, topped by a £22.3m Joan Miró
NewsBanksy
Banksy triptych—estimated at £1.2m—to be sold at Sotheby's in aid of Palestinian hospital
Artists has donated the works, which were previously on display in his Walled Off hotel in Bethlehem
AnalysisArt market
Sanyu, Zao Wou-Ki and Liu Ye: the Asian masters fetching millions at the Hong Kong auctions
Despite pandemic delays and the new National Security Law, the spring sales in the city last week fetched solid results
NewsArt market
Sotheby's to sell Bridget Riley painting from Heathrow executive lounge as British Airways 'fights for survival'
Auction house appointed to sell £1.4m of art from the beleaguered airline's collection this month
NewsArt market
Sotheby's to auction £4m restituted Bellotto painting that Jewish retail magnate was forced to sell to Hitler
The view of Dresden's Zwinger moat had been returned to the heirs of Max Emden and will now be offered for sale in London on 28 July
NewsArt market
Anatole Shagalov must pay Sotheby's $2m for Keith Haring painting, judge rules
Art dealer did not pay up for painting bought at auction in 2017
NewsArt market
Brave new world: Francis Bacon triptych sells for $84.5m in Sotheby's first major live-streamed evening sale
Marathon online high-tech auction was the first of its kind attempted by Sotheby's and totalled $363.2m, boosting confidence that a top-end market still exists
NewsArt market
Friends with benefits: art dealers cosy up to auction houses for online sales
As part of a growing trend, Sotheby's is launching The Dealer's Eye, two sales of works consigned by nearly 40 Old Master galleries in London and New York
NewsArt market
Let the distress sales begin: cash-strapped British Airways to sell some of its art collection
Airline has called in Sotheby's to value and sell at least ten pieces from its collection, which includes works by Damien Hirst, Bridget Riley and Peter Doig
NewsAntiquities
Sotheby’s cannot sue Greece over bronze horse, US court rules
The country's government had questioned the provenance of the artefact, forcing it to be pulled from a 2018 sale
NewsArt market
Florida man who bought a Rothko from Sotheby’s using a stolen identity sentenced to 4.5 years in prison
The interior decorator was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for buying art from galleries, auction houses and collectors using his wealthy clients’ credentials
NewsAuctions
Sotheby’s offers major works by 20th century female artists in $50m Ginny Williams Collection sale
Coinciding with the auction house's New York sale room re-opening in June, the sale marks the first time female artists will comprise over two-thirds of the value of an evening auction
NewsArt market
Strong sales as France restarts live auctions
Artcurial, the first auction house to reopen, doubled its sale estimate as lockdown seems to have "sharpened" buyers' appetite
NewsAuction houses
Allan Schwartzman leaves Sotheby's following restructuring under new ownership
The co-founder of Art Agency, Partners will transition to a consultant role as Nina del Rio takes the helm of the auction house's advisory services
NewsArt market
Sotheby’s prepares to reopen galleries in New York and London
Chief executive Charles Stewart lays plans for the auction house’s flagship sales to be held in New York next month
NewsArt market
Sotheby's launches Gallery Network online sales platform
Featuring galleries like Petzel, Lehmann Maupin and Jack Shainman, the buy-now marketplace transacts sales through the auction house at publicly listed prices
BlogDiary
On the block at Sotheby’s: David Bowie’s wallpaper featuring Lucian Freud nude—and emasculated minotaurs
NewsArt market
Redundancies, pay cuts and staff furloughs at Sotheby's as coronavirus impact bites
Christie's is also making salary cuts and has furloughed between 300-400 staff as lockdown closes auction houses and forces sales online
NewsArt market
Sotheby's postpones New York May 'gigaweek' sales due to coronavirus
Move is in line with Christie's and Phillips which postponed their sales to late June, but Sotheby's is yet to announce when its auctions will actually happen
FeatureObituaries
Peregrine Pollen, who revitalised auction industry and laid the ground for the booming art market of the 21st century, has died, age 89
One of the most dynamic figures in the international expansion of Sotheby's in the 1960s and 1970s, descended from generations of collectors and men of action
NewsArt market
What is Sotheby’s doing to win private sales?
As the Donald B. Marron collection goes to three dealers, the auction house is rethinking how it pitches for works
NewsSotheby's
Sotheby’s to offer $60m Francis Bacon triptych in May New York sales
The work comes from the collection of the Norweigan shipping heir Hans Rasmus Astrup and is the second major coup for the auction house’s spring sales season
BlogDiary
Sew unique: last chance to bid for textile works made by artists and prison inmates
NewsArt market
Sotheby’s relocates April Hong Kong auctions to New York due to coronavirus
The firm is also rolling its London June sales into one week for the first time in more than a decade
AnalysisArt market
US banker buys Brexit Banksy at Sotheby's, making a bigger splash than David Hockney’s pool painting
Auction house fields a steady contemporary evening sale in London
NewsArt market
Sotheby's new owner Patrick Drahi comes to auction house's first sale in post-Brexit Britain
“No fireworks” at last night's Impressionist, Modern and Surrealist art auction that featured three restituted works
AnalysisBuyer's Guide
How to buy a...Charles White
He chronicled the African American experience when white male abstraction ruled. Now record prices for his work are frequently reset
NewsAuctions
Sale prices soar past estimates at auction of decorator Mario Buatta's estate at Sotheby's
Christie's also holds its own at an auction of American furniture and folk art
AnalysisArt market
How serious are the dangers of market sponsorship of museum exhibitions?
Involvement from galleries and auction houses is on the rise as public institutions face dwindling government funds and increased scrutiny over toxic philanthropy
NewsArt market
Sotheby’s to auction three Nazi-looted works restituted to Jewish collector’s heirs
Two paintings by Signac and one by Pissarro are expected to fetch as much as £20m
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Want to buy a Van Gogh? Sotheby’s has four works with (relatively) modest estimates
Unseen for 25 years, they all come from a very private American collector
NewsAuction houses
2020 vision: the big year of change for auction houses?
Supported by transformational new technology, the sector is ditching its traditional business model in favour of the luxury goods market
NewsExport policies
UK buyer sought for £8m Gainsborough masterpiece barred from export
Pastoral landscape sold at Sotheby’s was once owned by Royal Holloway college
NewsArt market
Kenny Schachter on his Christmas clear out
Sotheby’s sale is set to raise half a million pounds, offsetting money lost in Inigo Philbrick deals
NewsArt market
Amy Cappellazzo becomes head of expanded Fine Arts division as Sotheby's restructures
While her role grows to cover departments such as Old Masters, second global division will include luxury objects and decorative art, jewellery and wine
NewsArt market
Sotheby's wins case over 'modern forgery' Frans Hals
Consigner of problematic painting must repay auction house for reimbursement to American client
AnalysisThe Year in Review 2019
From cancelled fairs to street art's auction room takeover: the art market's fruitiest stories of 2019
We look back at the stories that have overturned the art world order this year
AnalysisArt market
'Christmas dinner without the turkey': little festive cheer at Sotheby's Old Masters sale
December auction generates less than half the total of last year's sale, with several lots failing to sell
NewsArt market
Portrait commissioned by Charles Dickens, unseen for a century, goes on sale at Sotheby's London
The artist William Powell Frith 'almost collapsed' at the honour of being commissioned by the famous writer to paint his heroine Kate Nickleby
NewsArt market
Rediscovered Rubens to star in Sotheby's Old Masters sale in New York
Painting depicting the Holy Family in an evening landscape has been owned by a Manhattan family for more than 60 years
AnalysisSotheby's
Sotheby’s at the crossroads: new owner, new chief executive, new era
Will new management be able to grow the newly privatised auction house on a tight budget?
NewsArt market
Lifting the lid on auction house salaries: how long would it take an intern to earn Tad Smith's $28.2m Sotheby's payout?
Executive salaries rises, while junior staff struggle to move up the ladder
AnalysisArt market
Randomness rules New York's $42m American art sales
Small works won out at Sotheby's and Christie's as top lots went for their low estimates or were withdrawn
AnalysisAuctions
New York's autumn sales were subdued but not necessarily septic
Overall sales were down by around 30% but beyond the disappointing headline figures, women and minority artists shone
NewsBanksy
Banksy’s The Drinker withdrawn from Sotheby’s sale after rival artist claims ownership
Sculpture—estimated at £1m—was removed from the street by Andy Link in 2004 but later “liberated” from his East End garden
NewsBanksy
Artist who ‘kidnapped’ Banksy's The Drinker claims ownership ahead of Sotheby's sale
Andy Link says sculpture for which he demanded £5,000 in ransom was later stolen from him. Banksy’s former dealer says otherwise
NewsVincent Van Gogh
Two Dutch museums join forces to buy rare, $3m Van Gogh painting at Sotheby's New York
Work acquired by Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and the Drents Museum in Assen is one of few to survive from the artist's visit to Drenthe
PreviewArt market
Confidence may be low, but New York's auctions are aiming high
Can the quality of the smaller works coming up during "gigaweek" quell economic jitters?
NewsPrizes
Sotheby's Prize awarded to two exhibitions exploring indigenous Brazilian cultures
The $250,000 prize money will be shared between several São Paulo organisations
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
For sale: two Van Gogh paintings come up at Sotheby’s New York next week
One of the works was looted by the Nazis from Jewish collector Jacques Goudstikker, but is now being sold by his heir after restitution
NewsArt market
Sotheby's replaces Tad Smith with Charles F. Stewart as chief executive
Smith leaves after four and a half years with a $28.2m severance deal, including $16.9m in shares, and will remain as a senior adviser to Stewart
NewsArt market
Billionaires battle it out over the Lalannes at Sotheby’s in Paris
Jose Mugrabi and Antoine Arnault among collectors bidding at "white glove" sale of works by François-Xavier and Claude Lalanne
NewsBanksy
Banksy painting of chimps as MPs sells for record £9.9m at Sotheby's
Nicole Eisenman, Jean-Michel Basquiat and a dozen Italians help weather the Brexit storm
NewsAuction houses
Sotheby's ceases publicly trading on the New York Stock Exchange as its $3.7bn sale to Patrick Drahi closes
Chief financial officer Michael Goss is replaced by Jean-Luc Berrebi per the terms of the merger, which sees shareholders compensated $57 per share
NewsDiscoveries
Sotheby's to offer newly discovered Mantegna drawing
Preparatory sketch for The Triumph of Caesar will go on sale in New York in January
BlogIn the frame
Unmasked! 3D picture of Banksy (from the back) sells at Sotheby’s
NewsAuction houses
Sotheby’s shareholders approve $3.7bn sale to telecoms tycoon Patrick Drahi
With an overwhelming 91% of shareholders in favour, the publicly traded auction house will go private after three decades on the New York Stock Exchange
NewsArt market
US-China trade war expands to books and maps as increased tariffs hit art imports
Trump's newly increased tariff of 15% on Chinese goods now applies to the antiquarian trade, further affecting dealers and auction houses
NewsArt market
Fourth Sotheby’s shareholder files lawsuit in bid to block $3.7bn sale to Patrick Drahi
Auction house says such litigation is “routine in the US”, with deal expected to be completed by the end of the year
NewsArt market
Female artists outperform men when their work returns to auction, report finds
A data study by Sotheby's Mei Moses reveals a 73% increase for work by women in repeat sales, while male artists lagged at 8%
NewsArt market
Brexit contributes to 10% drop in sales at Sotheby’s in first half of 2019
Sale to telecoms magnate Patrick Drahi looks set to go ahead as firm makes up for a loss in revenue through increased commissions and more efficient guarantees
CommentHong Kong
Hong Kong art market profits despite protestors’ pain
If not immune to geopolitical unrest, then perhaps art is a refuge for money that is struggling to find its way into other assets
Melanie Gerlis