To Buy, Or Not To Buy?
To buy, or not to buy, that was the question: whether or not to part with a few sweet dollars to purchase a rare, complete set of William Shakespeare’s First Folio. The book was published in 1623 by Shakespeare’s friends … More…
Opacity In The Auction Market Gets Greater and Greater
The first part of the October 28th evening sales at Sotheby’s featured their Contemporary offerings, plus a piece of furniture and three Alfa Romeos! Now you, like me, might think this makes no sense, but for the auction rooms, it … More…
Sotheby’s Impressionist & Modern
On October 28, Sotheby’s presented two sales, a Contemporary one followed by the Impressionist & Modern (which we will cover here). By the time the sale began, four works had disappeared, so the featured 36 lots. This review will also … More…
Seeking Clarity – Contemporary Curated at Sotheby’s
It is getting to the point where auctions go out of their way to add a layer of opacity to the results, seemingly in an effort to make it more difficult to analyze their sales… I assume the underlying reason … More…
Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary Day Sale
Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary Day Sale was a full-day event for me as I began watching it at 10:00 AM, and there were still six lots to go when I left the gallery at 5:35 PM. Unfortunately, there was really … More…
Christie’s 19th-Century: Part II
On the 16th, Christie’s presented Part II of their 19th-century works, and it was a continuation of a difficult situation — lack of good quality material. Taking the top spot was Francois-Joseph Navez’s Two Italians. The painting was estimated to … More…
19th Century European – Sotheby’s Mid-Level Sale
When I first saw the Sotheby’s sale (and we did physically view it), I knew they would have a tough go – there were very few outstanding works. A few years ago, they moved their major 19th-century sale from the … More…
Christie’s – Part I – 19th Century
Well, the 19th century action continues (and there is more coming). Today, Christie’s presented a small, select, group of more expensive works, and the results were ok (for those items that were really nice). We went to view the sale … More…
Birds Fly By Estimate
We are happy as larks to be presenting Taking Flight, an exhibition that benefits the American Bird Conservancy. As such, I thought it would be very apropos to find a recent auction item with a bird theme…I was successful! John … More…
Christie’s Impressionist & Modern Day Sale – Not Enough Meat!
On October 8th, Christie’s held their Impressionist & Modern Day Sale, and I am sure they were not very happy with the end result. I have said this before, the auction rooms are flooding the market with material … some … More…
Mao Zedong Scroll Recovered, But Cut In Half
Three people were arrested in connection to a September 10th burglary in Hong Kong that is said to be the most expensive heist in the region to date. According to reports, the apartment of Fu Chunxiao, a well-known collector of … More…
Christie’s 20th Century Evening Sale
On October 7th, Christie’s presented their sale of 20th century works of art. The title is a little misleading since the earliest lot was some 67 million years old, and there were 5 works from the 19th century. As you … More…
You Said It, Not Me – Banksy Prints Sales at Sotheby’s & Christie’s
Last week, Sotheby’s and Christie’s hosted online sales of works by Banksy through their London locations… they were not originals, but prints; however, given his aura, they made some impressive prices. Before we get into it, I have to say … More…
Amazing What Technology Can Do – Facial Reconstruction
In Greco-Roman times, mummy portraits were all the rage! These painted portraits were placed over the embalmed face, and since the late 1880s, over 1000 portraits have been discovered. Sadly, only about 10% are still attached to the mummy. One … More…
When I Rains, It Pours – Marlborough Gallery
Marlborough Gallery is caught up in another legal matter. Prosecutors in France have charged the gallery and their director of Asian arts, Philippe Koutouzis, with bribery. They are claiming that Jean-Paul Desroches (retired curator from the Guimet Museum) received “compensation” … More…
“Gotta Catch ‘Em All”
If the current market for the sale of collectible cards has taught us anything, it’s DO NOT OPEN the boxes or packs…or buy two, one to open, one to save. A Pokémon First Edition Base Card Booster Set, produced in … More…