Art auction market report: November 2008
In November 2008, ArtSell recorded 2,575 auction lots from 13 auction houses, of which 2,048 sold (80% sell-through). The 2,048 sales with a published price total $37,282,254, with a median of $4,312 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was attributed to Bernard van Orley, “Mount Calvary”, at $907,344 (Lempertz). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Lots offered
2,575
13 houses
Sold
2,048
80% sell-through
Total
$37M
2,048 priced sales
Median
$4.3k
priced sales
Top sales
| # | Work | Artist | House · date | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mount Calvary | attributed to Bernard van Orley | Lempertz · Nov 23, 2008 | $907,344 (€720,000) |
| 2 | Gartenwicken, 1923 | Lovis Corinth | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $787,547 (€618,800) |
| 3 | Kokottenkopf in Federhut, 1909 | Ernst Ludwig Kirchner | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $787,547 (€618,800) |
| 4 | Strandleben, 1916 | Max Liebermann | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $757,257 (€595,000) |
| 5 | Angst | Edvard Munch | Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner · Nov 24, 2008 | $714,550 (NOK 5,000,000) |
| 6 | Walchensee, Mondnacht, 1924 | Lovis Corinth | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $681,531 (€535,500) |
| 7 | Flieder in Vase, 1915 | Lovis Corinth | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $605,805 (€476,000) |
| 8 | Selbstporträt am Walchensee, 1922 | Lovis Corinth | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $575,515 (€452,200) |
| 9 | Roter Vogel, 1971 | Georg Baselitz | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $575,515 (€452,200) |
| 10 | Stilleben im Kreis, 1911 | Gabriele Münter | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $560,370 (€440,300) |
| 11 | Cornflowers (Flowers in the Snow), 1927 | Jindřich Štyrský | Galerie Kodl · Nov 30, 2008 | $363,528 (CZK 7,200,000) |
| 12 | Urfeld am Walchensee, 1921 | Lovis Corinth | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $363,483 (€285,600) |
| 13 | Carmel Shore | Guy Rose | Bonhams · Nov 24, 2008 | $360,000 |
| 14 | Gespaltenes Feld, 1984 | Günther Uecker | Grisebach · Nov 28, 2008 | $351,367 (€276,080) |
| 15 | Der Watzmann, 1821 | August Heinrich | Grisebach · Nov 29, 2008 | $325,620 (€255,850) |
Top American artists
Ranked by total of priced sales in the month; region from the artist’s recorded nationality.
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guy Rose American | $360,000 | 1 | Carmel Shore — $360,000 |
| 2 | Granville Redmond American | $308,760 | 7 | Coastal Scene — $105,000 |
| 3 | William Wendt American | $281,400 | 3 | California Landscape — $228,000 |
| 4 | Edgar Alwin Payne American | $280,200 | 9 | Canyon del Muerto — $96,000 |
| 5 | George Rickey American | $258,402 | 6 | Triangles one up, one down excentric — $136,306 |
| 6 | George Grosz German | $242,322 | 2 | Barszene, New York — $166,596 |
| 7 | William A. Coulter American | $228,000 | 1 | Ships Sailing in the San Francisco Bay with Fort Point in the Distance — $228,000 |
| 8 | Lyonel Feininger American | $224,905 | 7 | West-Deep a. d. Rega — $75,726 |
| 9 | Christo American | $196,887 | 3 | WRAPPED REICHSTAG — $90,871 |
| 10 | John Marshall Gamble American | $150,000 | 4 | Spring Flowers (Poppies & Lupine) — $54,000 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lovis Corinth German | $4,030,119 | 12 | Gartenwicken — $787,547 |
| 2 | Edvard Munch Norwegian | $2,031,037 | 31 | Angst — $714,550 |
| 3 | Emil Nolde German | $1,197,980 | 13 | Wassermühlen Ruttebüllkoog — $257,467 |
| 4 | Max Liebermann German | $1,157,997 | 8 | Strandleben — $757,257 |
| 5 | Georg Baselitz German | $1,020,782 | 4 | Roter Vogel — $575,515 |
| 6 | Gabriele Münter German | $923,853 | 3 | Stilleben im Kreis — $560,370 |
| 7 | Ernst Ludwig Kirchner German | $834,497 | 4 | Kokottenkopf in Federhut — $787,547 |
| 8 | Karl Schmidt-Rottluff German | $599,747 | 13 | Jershöft (Pommern) — $189,314 |
| 9 | Max Pechstein German | $551,586 | 13 | Sonnenblumen — $302,903 |
| 10 | Lesser Ury German | $541,590 | 12 | Berlin bei Nacht — $128,734 |
New artist records
The artist’s best price this month exceeded every earlier priced result for them in the ArtSell database (artists with at least three earlier priced results).
| Artist | Work | Price | Previous high |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lovis Corinth | Gartenwicken Grisebach | $787,547 | $526,968 (97 earlier) |
| Georg Baselitz | Roter Vogel Grisebach | $575,515 | $138,409 (53 earlier) |
| Gabriele Münter | Stilleben im Kreis Grisebach | $560,370 | $491,837 (61 earlier) |
| Günther Uecker | Gespaltenes Feld Grisebach | $351,367 | $180,953 (60 earlier) |
| William Wendt | California Landscape Bonhams | $228,000 | $216,000 (16 earlier) |
| William A. Coulter | Ships Sailing in the San Francisco Bay with Fort Point in the Distance Bonhams | $228,000 | $42,000 (11 earlier) |
| Eberhard Havekost | National Geographic Grisebach | $227,177 | $184,545 (4 earlier) |
| Max Slevogt | Herbstlandschaft Neukastel, Blick auf Ilbesheim Grisebach | $136,306 | $118,315 (37 earlier) |
| Wilhelm Lehmbruck | Büste der Knienden Grisebach | $106,016 | $35,131 (18 earlier) |
| Johannes Molzahn | Pulsender Stern Grisebach | $104,501 | $1,061 (3 earlier) |
| František Foltýn | Afternoon Siesta Galerie Kodl | $103,000 | $6,017 (4 earlier) |
| Imi Knoebel | 38 s 0,9 w 0,2 Grisebach | $90,871 | $79,045 (62 earlier) |
| Karl Hartung | Kore Grisebach | $75,726 | $6,489 (3 earlier) |
| Marcel Mouly | La rue Espagnole à Peníscola Bonhams | $72,000 | $30,000 (4 earlier) |
| Marino Marini | Acrobate Bonhams | $69,000 | $9,666 (74 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Bonhams (617)Grisebach (399)James D. Julia (326)Van Sabben Poster Auctions (293)Levis Fine Art Auctions (290)Sloans & Kenyon (172)Lempertz (127)Whyte's (124)Agra-Art (91)Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner (72)Art+Object (42)Galerie Kodl (14)Crocker Farm (8)