On Wednesday, November 20th, Sotheby’s hosted their contemporary evening sale, including what, for the past several years, they have referred to as “The Now.” While it did not breach into the top lots, most of the talk surrounding this sale concerned Maurizio Cattelan’s world-famous piece of concept art known as The Comedian, consisting of a banana adhered to a wall with silver duct tape. I originally thought the lot would include concept drawings or one of the official installation guidelines the artist provides for any gallery or museum that licenses the work. However, I was somewhat surprised to see in the lot notes that a banana and duct tape were the work’s sole media. The famous fruity work of conceptual art ran straight past its pre-sale $1.5 million high estimate, achieving a final hammer price of $5.2 million (or $6.24 million w/p). The buyer was soon identified as cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun, who called The Comedian “a cultural phenomenon that bridges the worlds of art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community.” Not the ideas I associate with the work, but whatever floats your boat. Sun later announced his intention to eat the banana, transforming a commentary on the nature of art in the style of Marcel Duchamp into history’s most expensive grocery delivery.
Georges’ Flag by Ed Ruscha
The Cattelan may have been the star of the evening, but it was not the most valuable lot. That distinction goes to the 1999 Ed Ruscha painting Georges’ Flag. The work shows a billowing American flag against a fiery sky, based on a photograph Ruscha took of a large American flag at the Santa Monica Pier, the western terminus of Route 66. Georges’ Flag is a continuation of Ruscha’s longtime fixation on signs and symbols. Sotheby’s specialist Lisa Dennison describes it as “a bridge between realism and the graphic power of pop art.” Ruscha would return to the American flag as a subject later on in his career, treating it as a symbol in the same way that his pop art contemporaries like Jasper Johns would famously do. The enormous painting, measuring over 10 feet long, last sold at auction in 2005 at Christie’s for $1.6 million w/p. It fared far better this time around, selling slightly above its $12 million pre-sale high estimate at $13 million (or $13.65 million w/p).
Contranuities by Stuart Davis
In second place came a rather refreshing addition to the sale. The work of Stuart Davis, I think, is seldom highlighted at the big-budget evening sales at the major auction houses. He is known for his modernist take on daily life, and many refer to Davis as a precursor to pop art. His 1963 painting Contranuities displays a wide range of influences, drawing on both color and form from cubist art, Matisse, Mondrian, and Léger. Contranuities had previously been in the same private collection for over forty-five years, with the seller acquiring it from Andrew Crispo Galleries in 1978. The painting was also predicted to set a new auction record for the artist. His 1928 painting Rue Lipp previously held that title, selling for $6.8 million w/p at Sotheby’s New York in 2018. Even though it did not quite reach the $12 million minimum estimate, Contranuities regardless shattered this record, selling for $10.5 million (or $12.2 million w/p).
And finally, the third successful high-value lot at the evening sale was Untitled XXV by the legendary Dutch-American abstract expressionist Willem de Kooning. The 70-by-80-inch painting, with its flowing designs on a white field, is reminiscent of Kandinsky’s work from the 1920s. Sotheby’s lot notes describe Untitled XXV as “calligraphic”, since it is more calm than his early works and more representative of him settling into life in East Hampton, New York, by the 1980s. Comparing this painting with his earlier works, particularly his Woman series from the 1950s, shows the development of his artistic style over the decades. Untitled XXV ended up just squeezing by the specialists’ $9 million low pre-sale estimate, achieving $9.4 million (or $10.9 million w/p).
Untitled XXV by Willem de Kooning
Along with the Cattelan, Sotheby’s saw several other surprises that evening. Roy Lichtenstein’s 1992 Oval Office (Study), for example, attracted a great deal of attention, exceeding its $1.5 million high estimate by a factor of 2.3, hammering at $3.5 million (or $4.2 million w/p). Furthermore, the last lot in the sale, the 2022 silkscreen Black Dada (K) by Adam Pendleton, hammered at $850K, or 3.4 times its $250K high estimate. However, Sotheby’s faced a slight problem when some of the evening’s lots failed to gain traction with bidders and wound up unsold. These included the sculpture Woman in Tub by Jeff Koons (est. $10 million to $15 million) and the multimedia Jasper Johns work Evian (est. $6 million to $8 million). So even though only five of the forty available lots failed to sell, they resulted in Sotheby’s failing to hit their total pre-sale estimate low of $103.2 million. With fifteen lots selling within their estimates (38%), thirteen selling above (33%), and seven selling below (18%), Sotheby’s brought in slightly less at $98.4 million (or $112.3 million w/p).
Sotheby’s New York “The Now” & Contemporary
On Wednesday, November 20th, Sotheby’s hosted their contemporary evening sale, including what, for the past several years, they have referred to as “The Now.” While it did not breach into the top lots, most of the talk surrounding this sale concerned Maurizio Cattelan’s world-famous piece of concept art known as The Comedian, consisting of a banana adhered to a wall with silver duct tape. I originally thought the lot would include concept drawings or one of the official installation guidelines the artist provides for any gallery or museum that licenses the work. However, I was somewhat surprised to see in the lot notes that a banana and duct tape were the work’s sole media. The famous fruity work of conceptual art ran straight past its pre-sale $1.5 million high estimate, achieving a final hammer price of $5.2 million (or $6.24 million w/p). The buyer was soon identified as cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun, who called The Comedian “a cultural phenomenon that bridges the worlds of art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community.” Not the ideas I associate with the work, but whatever floats your boat. Sun later announced his intention to eat the banana, transforming a commentary on the nature of art in the style of Marcel Duchamp into history’s most expensive grocery delivery.
Georges’ Flag by Ed Ruscha
The Cattelan may have been the star of the evening, but it was not the most valuable lot. That distinction goes to the 1999 Ed Ruscha painting Georges’ Flag. The work shows a billowing American flag against a fiery sky, based on a photograph Ruscha took of a large American flag at the Santa Monica Pier, the western terminus of Route 66. Georges’ Flag is a continuation of Ruscha’s longtime fixation on signs and symbols. Sotheby’s specialist Lisa Dennison describes it as “a bridge between realism and the graphic power of pop art.” Ruscha would return to the American flag as a subject later on in his career, treating it as a symbol in the same way that his pop art contemporaries like Jasper Johns would famously do. The enormous painting, measuring over 10 feet long, last sold at auction in 2005 at Christie’s for $1.6 million w/p. It fared far better this time around, selling slightly above its $12 million pre-sale high estimate at $13 million (or $13.65 million w/p).
Contranuities by Stuart Davis
In second place came a rather refreshing addition to the sale. The work of Stuart Davis, I think, is seldom highlighted at the big-budget evening sales at the major auction houses. He is known for his modernist take on daily life, and many refer to Davis as a precursor to pop art. His 1963 painting Contranuities displays a wide range of influences, drawing on both color and form from cubist art, Matisse, Mondrian, and Léger. Contranuities had previously been in the same private collection for over forty-five years, with the seller acquiring it from Andrew Crispo Galleries in 1978. The painting was also predicted to set a new auction record for the artist. His 1928 painting Rue Lipp previously held that title, selling for $6.8 million w/p at Sotheby’s New York in 2018. Even though it did not quite reach the $12 million minimum estimate, Contranuities regardless shattered this record, selling for $10.5 million (or $12.2 million w/p).
And finally, the third successful high-value lot at the evening sale was Untitled XXV by the legendary Dutch-American abstract expressionist Willem de Kooning. The 70-by-80-inch painting, with its flowing designs on a white field, is reminiscent of Kandinsky’s work from the 1920s. Sotheby’s lot notes describe Untitled XXV as “calligraphic”, since it is more calm than his early works and more representative of him settling into life in East Hampton, New York, by the 1980s. Comparing this painting with his earlier works, particularly his Woman series from the 1950s, shows the development of his artistic style over the decades. Untitled XXV ended up just squeezing by the specialists’ $9 million low pre-sale estimate, achieving $9.4 million (or $10.9 million w/p).
Untitled XXV by Willem de Kooning
Along with the Cattelan, Sotheby’s saw several other surprises that evening. Roy Lichtenstein’s 1992 Oval Office (Study), for example, attracted a great deal of attention, exceeding its $1.5 million high estimate by a factor of 2.3, hammering at $3.5 million (or $4.2 million w/p). Furthermore, the last lot in the sale, the 2022 silkscreen Black Dada (K) by Adam Pendleton, hammered at $850K, or 3.4 times its $250K high estimate. However, Sotheby’s faced a slight problem when some of the evening’s lots failed to gain traction with bidders and wound up unsold. These included the sculpture Woman in Tub by Jeff Koons (est. $10 million to $15 million) and the multimedia Jasper Johns work Evian (est. $6 million to $8 million). So even though only five of the forty available lots failed to sell, they resulted in Sotheby’s failing to hit their total pre-sale estimate low of $103.2 million. With fifteen lots selling within their estimates (38%), thirteen selling above (33%), and seven selling below (18%), Sotheby’s brought in slightly less at $98.4 million (or $112.3 million w/p).