At 7 am Beijing time on Wednesday, Christie’s 21st Century Art Evening Sale was held in New York. As soon as the live broadcast started, it brought two “surprises” to everyone.
The first is hi – Global President Kenan Penn gave the auctioneer Georgina Hilton from Hong Kong the responsibility of lifting the hammer, which made Asian collectors and audience feel more cordial; the second is surprise – Pakistani Basquiat’s triptych on wood (expected to change hands at US$30 million) and another small work on wood (estimate US$4 million) were both withdrawn from auction.
After nearly two hours of bidding, all the 31 lots in the competition were sold, winning 100% of the white-glove sale and fetching US$103 million (RMB 685 million). The total hammer price was nearly US$87.3 million, higher than the combined low estimate of US$80 million.
As for this sale, the 1990s abstract painting by Richter took US$38.17 million. In addition, there are also many paintings by young artists born in the 1980s, which have broken records under the competition of Asian collectors.
Georgina Hilton surprises New York evening shooting
Lot 13B｜Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988) “Self-Portrait of the Artist: A Young Wanderer” Triptych acrylic, oil paint, oil pastel, hardware panel
Creation time: 1982
Dimensions: 207.3 x 209.2 x 9.2 cm
source:
- New York, FUN Gallery
- Paris, Galerie Mostini
- Acquired from the above by the present owner in 1995
Valuation to be inquired (the bank expects to sell at US$30,000,000)
withdraw the shot
Basquiat has been very popular in the auction market in recent years, with sky-high sales almost every quarter.
However, at Sotheby’s Hong Kong auction week last month, his 1984 wood panel painting “To the God of Water” was put on the market with a low estimate of HK$62 million, but it ended in failure. The canceled “Artist’s Self-Portrait: Young Wanderer” is also a wood panel work.
Is Basquiat’s market situation fluctuating? Or are only the wooden works more stressed? The answer may be revealed next week, when Basquiat’s 5-meter canvas masterpiece “Untitled” will be held at Phillips in New York. The painting is in the collection of Yuzu Maezawa, a wealthy Japanese businessman, and is estimated to be US$70 million.
The 5-meter-wide “Untitled” will be hammered at Phillips in New York next week
Lot 8B｜Gerhard Richter’s “Abstract Painting” oil on canvas (the winner of this auction)
Creation time: 1994
Size: 225 x 200 cm
Source (Organized by Value Point Network):
- London, Anthony d’Offay Gallery
- Berlin, Collection of Ulla & Heiner Pietzsch
- Sotheby’s New York, 14 November 2001, Lot 31 (sold from the above source)
- United Kingdom, Eric Clapton
- Sotheby’s London, 12 October 2012, Lot 15 (sold from the above source, sold for £21,321,250)
- Acquired by the current owner from the above auction
Valuation to be inquired (the bank expects to sell at US$35,000,000)
Hammer price: US$33,000,000
Sold price: US$38,175,00
The bidding for this work was quite lively. Auctioneer Georgina started the auction at US$26 million, dropped the hammer at US$33 million, and changed hands with a commission of US$38.17 million (RMB 254 million). “The number plate customer won.
“Abstract Painting” was made by the German master Richter. The last time he raised the hammer was in 2012. It was sold by “Guitar God” Eric Clapton. It changed hands at Sotheby’s in London for £21.32 million, which was equivalent to US$34 million at the time.
In addition to being a rock star, Eric Clapton is also a fairly well-known art collector. In addition to the above examples, he also commissioned Christie’s to auction Richter’s “Abstract Painting (809-2)” in 2016, which was finally sold for regarding US$22 million.
“Abstract Painting (809-2)” was also painted in 1994 as “Abstract Painting” with the hammer raised this time, and the size is also 225 x 200 cm.
Joanna Szymkowiak bids “Abstract Painting” for “1573” client
“Abstract Painting” is in the collection of Eric Clapton
“Abstract Painting (809-2)” was sold for approximately US$22 million in 2016
Richter pioneered the “scraping” technique
Among the famous contemporary artists in the world, Richter ranks among the top in terms of status, fame and worth. The German is known for his “abstract paintings” and “photo paintings”. The auction records for these two series were written in 2015 and 2013 respectively:
- Abstract Painting｜Abstract Painting, 1986, 300.5 x 250.5 cm, Sotheby’s London, £30,389,000
- Photo Painting | 1968, Piazza Duomo, Milan, 275 x 290 cm, Sotheby’s New York, US$37,125,000
Richter stepped into the world of abstract art in the 1960s. By the 1980s, he had matured and developed a unique creative style: using a scraper as a tool to wipe the paint on the canvas, blurring the outline of the picture and giving different layers of texture effects This shows up. This way of putting away the shackles of brushes can be said to have opened a new chapter in abstract art.
Beginning with the series of photo paintings, Richter has often created landscapes as the subject, a habit that has continued into his subsequent series of abstract paintings. Behind his abstract creations, there are often traditional Western landscape themes hidden.
Due to the cancellation of the auction of Basquiat’s triptych, other than the above-mentioned “Abstract Painting”, no other artworks sold for more than US$10 million.
However, there are many paintings by new stars in the art world, all of which have been sold at high prices due to the enthusiastic pursuit of Asian collectors. For the lots listed below, the Hong Kong telephone seat was either successfully bid or the second highest bidder (underbidder).
Lot 5B｜Matthew Wong (1984-2019) Green Room, oil on canvas (artist auction record)
Creation time: 2017
Size: 243.8 x 182.9 cm
source:
- New York, Karma Gallery
- Paris Private Collection
- Acquired from the above by the present owner
Estimate: US$1,500,000 – 2,000,000
Hammer price: US$4,400,000
Sold price: US$5,340,000
Jonas Wood, a famous contemporary American artist, once said: “Wang Junjie is a modern Van Gogh”. Wang Junjie (Matthew Wong) can be said to be a genius in the world, self-taught, but unfortunately, like Van Gogh, he passed away at the age of 35, which is a pity.
His paintings have achieved great results at auctions in recent years. In 2020, the 203.2 x 178cm “River of the Sunset” debuted at Phillips and Poly Hong Kong in a joint auction with HK$37.76 million, breaking his personal auction record. Until now, it is 243.8 x 182.9 cm, US$5.34 million (HK$41.6 million) ) was broken by Green Room, which changed hands.
Wang Junjie was born in Toronto and spent his childhood back and forth between Canada and Hong Kong. His landscapes and still lifes are poetic and dreamlike, with colorful pictures and vivid painting techniques, which remind people of the British contemporary master Hockney or the color application of the Fauvist pioneer Matisse.
Lot 4B｜Shara Hughes “Spins from Switzerland” oil and dye on canvas (artist auction record)
Creation time: 2017
Size: 198.1 x 177.8 cm
source:
- New York, Rachel Uffner Gallery
- Acquired from the above by the current owner
Estimate: US$500,000 – 700,000
Hammer price: US$2,400,000
Sold price: US$2,940,000
Shara Hughes, born in Atlanta, USA in 1981, graduated from Rhode Island School of Design, and now lives in New York to create. She initially focused on depicting interior spaces, but later turned her attention to the natural scenery outside the window, which was lush and colorful. Many art critics found its use of color reminiscent of Matisse and Hockney – just as Wang Junjie mentioned above.
Perhaps we can understand what nature meant to her in Shara’s own words: “I think nature reflects emotions in many ways…beauty, pain, peace, sadness can all change over the course of a day or over time. You see it as the weather changes. Nature is constantly changing, and you can never look at the same flower a second time with the same eyes. The light changes; it may grow, it may wilt, it may move. It’s a reflection of humanity and psychology.”
Despite his young age, Shara’s works have entered the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Denver Art Museum, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the X Art Museum in Beijing.
Lot 9B｜Ewa Juszkiewicz, Portrait of a Lady (After Louis Leopold Boilly), oil on canvas (artist auction record)
Creation time: 2019
Size: 200 x 160 cm
source:
- New York, Gagosian
- New York Private Collection
- Donation from the above sources to the current owner
Estimate: US$200,000 – 300,000
Hammer price: US$1,250,000
Sold price: US$1,560,000
Ewa Juszkiewicz, born in Poland in 1984, obtained a master’s degree and a doctorate degree in painting there, and is now an artist under the famous gallery Gagosian.
Her portraits of women, dressed and composed in classical oil paintings, sometimes in a Baroque or Rococo style, are not too prominent, but the treatment of the face is unforgettable. The face that should have delicate makeup is either entangled in clothes or fabrics, or covered by long hair, or even directly replaced by insects or flowers, which is quite creepy.
Some critics believe that the Eastern European painter’s creative techniques are traditional, but the content of his creation is bold and rebellious, boldly challenging the tradition of Western female beauty.
Lot 1B｜Anna Weyant, Summertime, oil on canvas (artist auction record)
Creation time: 2020
Dimensions: 76.2 x 101.6 cm
source:
- New York, 56 Henry Gallery
- New York Private Collection
- Acquired from the above by the current owner
Estimate: US$200,000 – 300,000
Hammer price: US$1,200,000
Transaction Price: US$1,500,000
Born in 1995, he was previously represented by famous galleries such as Blum & Poe and 56 Henr, and is now the youngest artist under Gagosian. Western media reported last year that she was dating Gagosian founder Larry Gagosian, but the gallery declined to comment at the time.
The Canadian artist, inspired by the Dutch Golden Age, loves to paint female portraits and floral still lifes. “I might paint flowers all day long… Of course, all the flowers that were cut were dead, and there was a certain violence in the process of dying. The first floral work I showed at Blum & Poe was called Jaws ‘…I’ve always loved the ‘there’s something in the water’ line in the movie Jaws. Evil usually takes on the illusion of beauty, even serenity.”
As for the teenage girls, she said: “I definitely have a complicated relationship with these girls who don’t exist, but I’m with them most of the time, so they must have become real. I’d love to connect my audience with this Sad, sympathetic characters share a relationship. I think there’s a sense of humor in it, and I hope you all feel it. Humor is so important to me, it’s healing, and it’s helped me get through this tough time day.”
Lot 3B｜Salman Toor “Girl and Boy with Driver” oil on canvas
Creation time: 2013
Dimensions: 134.3 x 199 cm
source:
- New York, Aicon Gallery
- Acquired from the above by the current owner
Estimate: US$150,000 – 200,000
Hammer price: US$700,000
Sold price: US$882,000
Salman Toor, born in Pakistan in 1983, went to study in the United States and now lives and works in Brooklyn. He is a member of the LGBTQ minority artist group “The New Queer Intimists”.
He once said in interviews that he grew up in a middle-class family full of imitation Rococo furniture, cheap Victorian prints, 17th-century Mughal miniatures, and even Koranic calligraphy. Although these works of art can be said to be disparate and aesthetically very different, they have given birth to his unique creative style.
In addition to the sexual minorities, Salman also hopes that South Asians can become the protagonists of the paintings in the white-dominated art world, just like Africans.
Auction Summary
Auction house: Christie’s New York
Special Sale: 21st Century Art Evening Sale
Auction date: 2022/5/10
Number of lots: 31
Sales: 31
Turnover rate: 100%
Total Turnover: US$103,064,200
