Art auction market report: May 2009
In May 2009, ArtSell recorded 1,387 auction lots from 10 auction houses, of which 1,161 sold (84% sell-through). The 1,161 sales with a published price total $19,864,600, with a median of $4,318 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Frederic Edwin Church, “Twilight in the Tropics (A tropical moonlight) 30 x 25 1/4in”, at $1,274,000 (Bonhams). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top sales
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 | Frederic Edwin Church American | $1,274,000 | 1 | Twilight in the Tropics (A tropical moonlight) 30 x 25 1/4in — $1,274,000 |
| 2 | Richard Edward Miller American | $317,965 | 2 | The Plaid Skirt 34 x 36 in. — $314,000 |
| 3 | William Merritt Chase American | $212,000 | 1 | Long Island Landscape 16 x 20in — $212,000 |
| 4 | William James Glackens American | $206,000 | 1 | Boys with sled, Washington Square 12 x 16in — $206,000 |
| 5 | Grandma Moses American | $155,550 | 3 | A Fine Gobbler, 1948 15 1/2 x 19 1/2in — $64,050 |
| 6 | Max Ernst German | $143,800 | 3 | Ophelia (auch: Luftspiegelung) - Ophelia (also: Mirage) — $135,341 |
| 7 | Paul Manship American | $91,500 | 1 | 'Morning and Night' from 'Moods of Time' 14 1/2 x 22 x 8in and 15 1/2 x 22 1/2 x 5 1/2in respectively — $91,500 |
| 8 | Sam Francis American | $81,204 | 1 | No. 7 Comment (SFP 60 - 16) — $81,204 |
| 9 | Frederick William MacMonnies American | $70,150 | 4 | Diana height: 31in — $36,600 |
| 10 | Robert Rauschenberg American | $63,523 | 3 | Letter Head — $51,850 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heinrich Campendonk German | $1,099,644 | 1 | Blumenbild (Picture with flowers) Verso: Paar (Couple) — $1,099,644 |
| 2 | Joseph Beuys German | $456,775 | 6 | Sonnenkreuz (SUN CROSS) — $406,022 |
| 3 | Gerhard Marcks German | $333,784 | 5 | Maja — $236,846 |
| 4 | Domenico Quaglio the Younger Italian | $308,210 | 1 | The Market Church of St. Georgii et Jacobi, the Market Place and the Town Hall in Hannover — $308,210 |
| 5 | Lesser Ury German | $272,373 | 4 | Dame im blauen Kleid im Café (Lady with Blue Dress in café) — $118,423 |
| 6 | Serge Poliakoff Russian | $262,223 | 1 | Composition bleu au cercle bleu (Cercle Bleu) — $262,223 |
| 7 | Gerhard Richter German | $253,764 | 1 | UNTITLED — $253,764 |
| 8 | Egon Schiele Austrian | $236,846 | 1 | Zwei liegende Akte (Two Reclining Nudes) — $236,846 |
| 9 | Henry Moore British | $235,155 | 2 | Mother and Child No. 3: Child on Knee — $125,190 |
| 10 | Jacob Philipp Hackert German | $222,236 | 2 | THE ERUPTION OF MOUNT VESUVIUS — $186,548 |
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).
Auction houses this month
Lempertz (503)Bonhams (252)Whyte's (199)Clarke Auction Gallery (180)Agra-Art (135)SOGA (52)Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner (45)Bolsa de Arte (14)Levis Fine Art Auctions (5)Van Ham (2)