Week 18, 2026
Notable sales: Apr 27 – May 3, 2026
In the week of Apr 27 – May 3, 2026, ArtSell recorded 2,977 auction lots, of which 2,330 sold. The 2,323 sales with a published price total $29,963,941, with a median of $1,596. The top result was Brett Whiteley, “Woman on the Beach Reading an Art Catalogue 1980”, at $2,633,899 (Smith & Singer, Apr 28, 2026). 10 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top 25 results
- $2,633,899 (A$3,681,818)
- Ned Kelly and Horse 1955, 1955$2,370,509 (A$3,313,636)
- $1,659,356 (A$2,319,545)
- Theatrical Façade 1996, 1996$1,053,559 (A$1,472,727)
- The Sideboard 1959, 1959$570,678 (A$797,727)
- The Discussion (1969), 1969$544,339 (A$760,909)
- The Walker I 1965, 1965$526,780 (A$736,364)
- $526,780 (A$736,364)
- 'Mouton de Pierre', designed 1979, executed 1989$487,945 (£361,200)
- $395,085 (A$552,273)
- $383,385 (£283,800)
- Place de la Concorde (circa 1918-1919), 1918-1919$351,186 (A$490,909)
- The Harbour (1926), 1926$333,627 (A$466,364)
- $307,288 (A$429,545)
- $306,654 (£227,000)
- Pear (1971-1972, cast later), 1971-1972$280,949 (A$392,727)
- $263,390 (A$368,182)
- Footed bowl, 1969$226,546 (£167,700)
- $219,491 (A$306,818)
- $219,491 (A$306,818)
- Kelly and Horse 1962, 1962$219,491 (A$306,818)
- Gum Blossom (1995), 1995$201,932 (A$282,273)
- Pair of cabinets, circa 1900$191,693 (£141,900)
- $166,814 (A$233,182)
- Table lamp, 1951$166,400
New artist records
The artist’s best price this week exceeded every earlier priced result for them in the ArtSell database (artists with at least three earlier priced results).
| Artist | Work | Price | Previous high |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russell Drysdale | Drovers on the Barkly's (1957) | $1,659,356 | $1,355,134 (131 earlier) |
| Cressida Campbell | Parsley Bay, Sydney (1992) | $526,780 | $385,870 (64 earlier) |
| Cedric Morris | PAYSAGE DU JARDIN No.2, 1931 | $306,654 | $264,580 (12 earlier) |
| George Baldessin | Pear (1971-1972, cast later) | $280,949 | $152,750 (73 earlier) |
| Carlo Bugatti | Pair of cabinets | $191,693 | $123,197 (74 earlier) |
| Georges Jouve | Table lamp | $166,400 | $159,403 (139 earlier) |
| Duncan Grant | STILL LIFE - FLOWERS, c.1930s | $85,377 | $46,301 (48 earlier) |
| Fernando and Humberto Campana | Prototype Detonado Modular Bookshelf 1 | $79,360 | $53,125 (62 earlier) |
| Tristram Hillier | FALLEN ELM, 1979 | $71,760 | $32,007 (4 earlier) |
| Keith Vaughan | STUDY FOR LAOCOÖN GROUP VIII, 1964 | $64,951 | $22,680 (46 earlier) |
Most active artists
Artists with the most priced sales this week.
René Lalique (116 sold · $705k)Gio Ponti (18 sold · $167k)Pablo Picasso (14 sold · $132k)Ettore Sottsass (12 sold · $511k)Man Ray (12 sold · $14.8k)Line Vautrin (11 sold · $356k)Tyler Hays (11 sold · $66.6k)Charles and Ray Eames (11 sold · $18.1k)Carlo Scarpa (10 sold · $286k)Denis Mitchell (10 sold · $56.1k)
Generated from the auction results recorded in ArtSell for sales held Apr 27 – May 3, 2026 (by sale date). Prices are converted to USD at the sale-date rate; the original currency is shown in brackets. Results that houses publish later are added as they arrive. ArtSell is a database of auction results; it does not authenticate or value works.