Art auction market report: May 2013
In May 2013, ArtSell recorded 3,685 auction lots from 23 auction houses, of which 3,027 sold (82% sell-through). The 3,027 sales with a published price total $166,742,787, with a median of $6,609 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Andy Warhol, “Four Marilyns”, at $38,245,000 (Phillips). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top sales
| # | Work | Artist | House · date | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Four Marilyns, 1962 | Andy Warhol | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $38,245,000 |
| 2 | And If, 1992 | Christopher Wool | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $4,085,000 |
| 3 | Großer Geist Nr. 9, 1998 | Thomas Schütte | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $4,085,000 |
| 4 | Still Life, 1972 | Roy Lichtenstein | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $4,085,000 |
| 5 | Untitled, 1981 | Jean-Michel Basquiat | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $4,085,000 |
| 6 | Flowers, 1964 | Andy Warhol | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $2,461,000 |
| 7 | Nature hivernale, 1987 | Chu Teh-chun | Ravenel · May 26, 2013 | $2,246,446 (HK$17,440,000) |
| 8 | Contra Relevo (Objeto N. 7), 1959 | Lygia Clark | Phillips · May 23, 2013 | $2,225,000 |
| 9 | Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn), 1967 | Andy Warhol | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $2,045,000 |
| 10 | Rhein, 1996 | Andreas Gursky | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $1,925,000 |
| 11 | 28.4.75, 1975 | Zao Wou-ki | Ravenel · May 26, 2013 | $1,813,645 (HK$14,080,000) |
| 12 | Untitled, 1999 | Christopher Wool | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $1,685,000 |
| 13 | Jim Beam - Observation Car, 1986 | Jeff Koons | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $1,625,000 |
| 14 | Landschaft (mit Regenwolke), 1925 | Emil Nolde | Grisebach · May 30, 2013 | $1,579,168 (€1,220,000) |
| 15 | Concetto spaziale, Attese, 1961 | Lucio Fontana | Phillips · May 16, 2013 | $1,565,000 |
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 | Andy Warhol American | $46,713,740 | 22 | Four Marilyns — $38,245,000 |
| 2 | Christopher Wool American | $5,770,000 | 2 | And If — $4,085,000 |
| 3 | Jean-Michel Basquiat American | $4,441,250 | 7 | Untitled — $4,085,000 |
| 4 | Roy Lichtenstein American | $4,227,117 | 4 | Still Life — $4,085,000 |
| 5 | Jeff Koons American | $2,146,000 | 2 | Jim Beam - Observation Car — $1,625,000 |
| 6 | Rudolf Stingel American | $1,196,500 | 3 | Untitled — $665,000 |
| 7 | John Chamberlain American | $991,875 | 3 | Gris Gris Gumbo Ya Ya — $905,000 |
| 8 | Wayne Thiebaud American | $896,125 | 2 | Cat and Traffic — $893,000 |
| 9 | Dana Schutz American | $685,000 | 3 | Dead Zebra — $365,000 |
| 10 | Jacques Lipchitz French | $660,575 | 1 | Homme assis \xE0\xA0 la clarinette II — $660,575 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas Schütte German | $4,085,000 | 1 | Großer Geist Nr. 9 — $4,085,000 |
| 2 | Emil Nolde German | $2,889,329 | 11 | Landschaft (mit Regenwolke) — $1,579,168 |
| 3 | Andreas Gursky German | $2,374,521 | 5 | Rhein — $1,925,000 |
| 4 | Zao Wou-ki French | $1,816,770 | 2 | 28.4.75 — $1,813,645 |
| 5 | Lucio Fontana Italian | $1,565,000 | 1 | Concetto spaziale, Attese — $1,565,000 |
| 6 | Karl Schmidt-Rottluff German | $1,483,046 | 9 | Landschaft mit Leuchtturm und Windmühle — $1,263,334 |
| 7 | Günther Uecker German | $1,343,256 | 3 | Feld 83/84 — $1,019,593 |
| 8 | Max Liebermann German | $1,301,998 | 4 | Der Nutzgarten in Wannsee nach Westen — $1,231,751 |
| 9 | Karl Hofer Swiss | $1,297,027 | 10 | Der Seminarist — $363,209 |
| 10 | Max Beckmann German | $1,015,265 | 38 | Kinderspielplatz alter Botanischer Garten — $315,834 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andy Warhol | Four Marilyns Phillips | $38,245,000 | $2,008,900 (410 earlier) |
| Christopher Wool | And If Phillips | $4,085,000 | $2,582,303 (16 earlier) |
| Jean-Michel Basquiat | Untitled Phillips | $4,085,000 | $3,016,499 (16 earlier) |
| Roy Lichtenstein | Still Life Phillips | $4,085,000 | $155,443 (152 earlier) |
| Thomas Schütte | Großer Geist Nr. 9 Phillips | $4,085,000 | $31,884 (13 earlier) |
| Andreas Gursky | Rhein Phillips | $1,925,000 | $138,339 (24 earlier) |
| Jeff Koons | Jim Beam - Observation Car Phillips | $1,625,000 | $10,625 (30 earlier) |
| Lucio Fontana | Concetto spaziale, Attese Phillips | $1,565,000 | $1,427,071 (66 earlier) |
| Fred Williams | POOL AT AGNES FALLS (1981) Smith & Singer | $1,331,438 | $1,054,125 (32 earlier) |
| Karl Schmidt-Rottluff | Landschaft mit Leuchtturm und Windmühle Grisebach | $1,263,334 | $760,929 (288 earlier) |
| Max Liebermann | Der Nutzgarten in Wannsee nach Westen Grisebach | $1,231,751 | $1,162,392 (258 earlier) |
| Günther Uecker | Feld 83/84 Lempertz | $1,019,593 | $661,325 (113 earlier) |
| John Chamberlain | Gris Gris Gumbo Ya Ya Phillips | $905,000 | $275,000 (12 earlier) |
| Wayne Thiebaud | Cat and Traffic Phillips | $893,000 | $23,750 (14 earlier) |
| Luo Zhongli | Blowing Series Ravenel | $772,860 | $618,288 (9 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Grisebach (479)Lempertz (459)Phillips (406)Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) (347)Strauss & Co (297)Pananti (250)Ketterer Kunst (187)Bonhams (185)Whyte's (175)Smith & Singer (149)deVeres (134)Menzies (131)Leonard Joel (93)Levis Fine Art Auctions (77)Agra-Art (58)Art+Object (52)Galerie Kodl (51)Clarke Auction Gallery (51)Toovey's (50)Ravenel (37)Cottone Auctions (11)Artmark (4)Van Ham (2)