Art auction market report: February 2013
In February 2013, ArtSell recorded 1,142 auction lots from 8 auction houses, of which 641 sold (56% sell-through). The 641 sales with a published price total $24,052,237, with a median of $1,200 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Jean-Michel Basquiat, “Untitled”, at $3,016,499 (Phillips). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Lots offered
1,142
8 houses
Sold
641
56% sell-through
Total
$24M
641 priced sales
Median
$1.2k
priced sales
Top sales
| # | Work | Artist | House · date | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Untitled, 1982 | Jean-Michel Basquiat | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $3,016,499 (£1,945,250) |
| 2 | Untitled (P271), 1997 | Christopher Wool | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $2,582,303 (£1,665,250) |
| 3 | For B.A.M., 1985 | Jean-Michel Basquiat | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $1,184,471 (£763,830) |
| 4 | East of Eden, 1999 | Cecily Brown | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $1,123,405 (£724,450) |
| 5 | Frozen Head, 2009 | Marc Quinn | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $1,106,037 (£713,250) |
| 6 | Untitled (Black and Canary Yellow Butterfly) #699, 2008 | Mark Grotjahn | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $709,058 (£457,250) |
| 7 | Waterfall, 2006 | Rosemarie Trockel | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $560,190 (£361,250) |
| 8 | Green Escalade, 2005 | Nate Lowman | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $522,974 (£337,250) |
| 9 | Untitled (91-149 Menziken), 1991 | Donald Judd | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $522,974 (£337,250) |
| 10 | Le Chien Rodeur, 1955 | Jean Dubuffet | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $504,365 (£325,250) |
| 11 | Untitled (Look and listen), 1996 | Barbara Kruger | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $392,715 (£253,250) |
| 12 | Hammer and Sickle, 1977 | Andy Warhol | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $383,411 (£247,250) |
| 13 | Rot-Blau-Gelb (Red-Blue-Yellow), 1973 | Gerhard Richter | Phillips · Feb 15, 2013 | $373,624 (£241,250) |
| 14 | Bomb Middle England, 2001 | Banksy | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $355,498 (£229,250) |
| 15 | Tomato Juice Box, 1964 | Andy Warhol | Phillips · Feb 14, 2013 | $346,194 (£223,250) |
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 | Jean-Michel Basquiat American | $4,200,970 | 2 | Untitled — $3,016,499 |
| 2 | Christopher Wool American | $2,623,988 | 2 | Untitled (P271) — $2,582,303 |
| 3 | Andy Warhol American | $1,270,805 | 13 | Hammer and Sickle — $383,411 |
| 4 | Mark Grotjahn American | $730,352 | 2 | Untitled (Black and Canary Yellow Butterfly) #699 — $709,058 |
| 5 | Nate Lowman American | $522,974 | 1 | Green Escalade — $522,974 |
| 6 | Donald Judd American | $522,974 | 1 | Untitled (91-149 Menziken) — $522,974 |
| 7 | Barbara Kruger American | $392,715 | 1 | Untitled (Look and listen) — $392,715 |
| 8 | Cindy Sherman American | $379,687 | 2 | Untitled #469 — $318,281 |
| 9 | Rudolf Stingel American | $232,231 | 3 | Untitled — $122,893 |
| 10 | Roy Lichtenstein American | $231,122 | 5 | Yellow Vase, from Interior Series — $60,101 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marc Quinn British | $1,528,372 | 3 | Frozen Head — $1,106,037 |
| 2 | Cecily Brown British | $1,431,983 | 2 | East of Eden — $1,123,405 |
| 3 | Rosemarie Trockel German | $560,190 | 1 | Waterfall — $560,190 |
| 4 | Jean Dubuffet French | $504,365 | 1 | Le Chien Rodeur — $504,365 |
| 5 | Gerhard Richter German | $418,151 | 3 | Rot-Blau-Gelb (Red-Blue-Yellow) — $373,624 |
| 6 | Banksy British | $378,235 | 2 | Bomb Middle England — $355,498 |
| 7 | Anselm Reyle German | $364,487 | 3 | Harmony — $178,488 |
| 8 | Albert Oehlen German | $262,456 | 1 | Student II — $262,456 |
| 9 | Damien Hirst British | $237,341 | 7 | In A Spin, The Action of the World on Things Volume II — $60,101 |
| 10 | Howard Hodgkin British | $228,999 | 5 | As Time Goes By (blue) — $74,653 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jean-Michel Basquiat | Untitled Phillips | $3,016,499 | $206,147 (13 earlier) |
| Marc Quinn | Frozen Head Phillips | $1,106,037 | $16,128 (6 earlier) |
| Rosemarie Trockel | Waterfall Phillips | $560,190 | $41,636 (43 earlier) |
| Donald Judd | Untitled (91-149 Menziken) Phillips | $522,974 | $18,124 (31 earlier) |
| Jean Dubuffet | Le Chien Rodeur Phillips | $504,365 | $130,525 (31 earlier) |
| Banksy | Bomb Middle England Phillips | $355,498 | $25,087 (4 earlier) |
| Cindy Sherman | Untitled #469 Phillips | $318,281 | $22,865 (10 earlier) |
| Julian Schnabel | Winnie Phillips | $206,364 | $41,394 (7 earlier) |
| Anselm Reyle | Harmony Phillips | $178,488 | $106,477 (11 earlier) |
| Robert Indiana | Why O Why Has Peace Fled Phillips | $178,488 | $28,341 (40 earlier) |
| Richard Hamilton | The Solomon R Guggenheim Museum Phillips | $83,748 | $59,272 (40 earlier) |
| Howard Hodgkin | As Time Goes By (blue) Phillips | $74,653 | $6,568 (12 earlier) |
| Yannis Kounellis | Untitled Phillips | $66,981 | $13,678 (4 earlier) |
| Julian Opie | Ruth Smoking I-V Phillips | $45,474 | $42,591 (9 earlier) |
| George Condo | Bedroom Scene Phillips | $42,589 | $34,854 (13 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Sloans & Kenyon (520)Phillips (279)Bonhams (124)Clarke Auction Gallery (114)Agra-Art (57)Toovey's (25)Leonard Joel (15)Artmark (8)