Pretty impressive results for the recent set of Contemporary sales in London. As Katya Kazakina points out in her recent article: A painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat that failed to sell at Sotheby’s 11 months ago became the comeback kid of the $229 million Frieze week auctions in London, where historically low sterling and strong global demand for contemporary art boosted market confidence. That total is before the sale that took place on Saturday.
Basquiat’s “Hannibal” — starring the artist’s signature skull and crown surrounded by scribbles on orange background — was chased by at least seven bidders to reach 10.6 million pounds ($13.2 million) at Sotheby’s, more than double its presale high estimate of 4.5 million pounds. The work drew no bids in November when it was pegged at as much as $12 million at a Sotheby’s sale in the U.S.
Now before we really celebrate the contemporary market’s health, we need to see the results from all the other sales that will happen between now and the end of November. But … this is a nice start.
Source: Comeback Kid Basquiat’s Canvas Boosts $229 Million U.K. Auctions – Bloomberg
Basquiat “Hannibal”