NYC auction house art sales continue

[November 05, 2008]  NEW YORK (AP) -- A jittery economy is painting a picture of anxiety for art auction houses which are seeing their fall season open to a mix of strong prices for some 20th century masterpieces -- and a high percentage of unsold works.

Sotheby's kicked off the season Monday with impressive winning bids for works by Edgar Degas, Kazimir Malevich and Edvard Munch. Overall, 45 works sold, but 25 did not.

"Last night firmly demonstrated the concept of a recession in the art market is not abstract but real," Ian Peck, chief executive officer of the art finance firm Art Capital Group, said Tuesday. "Prices in all categories -- the trophies, the great, and the merely very good -- were less contested, if at all, and end prices were likely reduced by 20 to 40 percent."

After a day off, Sotheby's offers more works Wednesday, from the Impressionist and modern period with strong examples by Russian artists -- a sale that Peck said will directly test "the Russian collector's appetite and interest."

The high-end art market had stumbled in recent months as hedge fund traders, financiers and Russian, European and Middle Eastern buyers fell victims to the financial crisis.

Christie's kicks off its first auction of the season Wednesday with paintings, sculptures and decorative arts from two private collections of such masters as Pablo Picasso, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Edouard Manet and Paul Cezanne. Its combined presale estimate is $130 million.

Among the highlights of the Alex and Rita Hillman collection is Manet's "Fillette sur un banc," estimated at $12 million to $18 million, and Toulouse-Lautrec's "Portrait de Henri Nocq," estimated at $6 million to $8 million. Works from the collection have been exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and other major museums.

The second collection is owned by designer and philanthropist Alice Lawrence and includes Mark Rothko's "No 43 (Mauve)." Painted in 1960, it is estimated at $20 million to $30 million.

Among Sotheby's Russian artist offerings is "View of St. Petersburg," by Alexei Petrovich Bogoliubov, estimated at $2 million to $3 million. Another version of the painting hangs in the State Russian Museum.

Many of the estimates were set in the summer, when financial markets in Europe, Asia and Russia were still strong. Christie's said it now is asking its sellers to be realistic.

"Without a doubt, we will be calling consignors on some of the lots and discussing the interest level in them," said Guy Bennett, its international co-head of Impressionist and modern art.

On Monday, Sotheby's took in $223.8 million, which it called its fifth-highest Impressionist/modern sale total ever. However, it fell short of its presale estimate of $337 million to $475 million.

"Given the volatility and uncertainty in the financial markets, we were gratified to have sold three pictures which were masterworks for more than $30 million and overall about two-thirds of our lots," Sotheby's said Tuesday.

"Buyers were circumspect, as expected, but clearly willing to commit money to art," Sotheby's said. "We expect this pattern to continue."

Sotheby's said buyers were predominantly from the Americas.

Degas' "Dancer in Repose" sold for just over $37 million, an all-time high for the artist, but below the $40 million estimate. Munch's "Vampire" set a new record for the Norwegian artist at $38.2 million.

Malevich's "Suprematist Composition" fetched $60 million, the highest price at Monday's auction and in line with its presale estimate. The painting was recently returned to the artist's descendants following a court battle and after residing for many years in the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. To ensure the painting sold, Sotheby's had secured an irrevocable undisclosed bid prior to the auction from a bidder. But it did not disclose the name of that person or the one who paid the $60 million.

The wilting economy likely played a role in Sotheby's decision last week to withdraw Picasso's "Arlequin" from its Monday sale for "private reasons."

Christie's sale of Impressionist and modern art continues on Thursday and Friday. Next week both houses will offer works of postwar and contemporary art.

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On the Net:

Christie's: http://www.christies.com/

Sotheby's: http://www.sothebys.com/

[Associated Press; By ULA ILNYTZKY]

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