Art auction market report: November 2014
In November 2014, ArtSell recorded 5,902 auction lots from 29 auction houses, of which 5,006 sold (85% sell-through). The 4,972 sales with a published price total $165,034,157, with a median of $4,792 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Robert Ryman, “Hour”, at $5,205,000 (Phillips). 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 | Robert Ryman American | $5,205,000 | 1 | Hour — $5,205,000 |
| 2 | Willem de Kooning American | $4,869,000 | 1 | Untitled XVIII — $4,869,000 |
| 3 | Andy Warhol American | $4,777,649 | 23 | Diamond Dust Shoes — $3,301,000 |
| 4 | Wade Guyton American | $4,645,000 | 1 | Untitled — $4,645,000 |
| 5 | Frank Stella American | $4,177,750 | 3 | Concentric Square — $3,973,000 |
| 6 | Mark Rothko American | $4,085,000 | 1 | Untitled — $4,085,000 |
| 7 | Richard Prince American | $3,899,750 | 4 | Untitled (Cowboy) — $1,805,000 |
| 8 | Tauba Auerbach American | $2,830,000 | 2 | Untitled (Fold) — $2,285,000 |
| 9 | Hans Hofmann American | $2,405,000 | 1 | Orchestral Dominance in Green — $2,405,000 |
| 10 | Rudolf Stingel American | $1,846,000 | 2 | Untitled — $1,061,000 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adolph von Menzel German | $4,432,463 | 11 | Stehende Rüstungen (aus der Folge der Rüstkammer-Phantasien) — $4,110,513 |
| 2 | Jan Brueghel the Elder Flemish | $2,840,527 | 2 | Still life with flowers in a clay vase — $2,820,480 |
| 3 | Martin Kippenberger German | $2,437,496 | 4 | Untitled — $2,345,000 |
| 4 | Max Beckmann German | $1,912,376 | 6 | Stürmische Nordsee (Wangerooge) — $1,744,080 |
| 5 | Max Liebermann German | $1,397,086 | 12 | Papageienallee im Zoologischen Garten in Amsterdam — $655,200 |
| 6 | Caspar David Friedrich German | $1,186,373 | 2 | Die Frau mit dem Spinnennetz zwischen kahlen Bäumen (Melancholie) — $1,123,998 |
| 7 | Andreas Gursky German | $1,176,634 | 4 | James Bond Island I — $725,000 |
| 8 | Otto Piene German | $1,147,805 | 33 | Rasterbild — $273,577 |
| 9 | Günther Uecker German | $1,128,591 | 14 | Feld — $386,973 |
| 10 | Karl Hofer Swiss | $1,122,955 | 15 | "Mädchen mit Blumen" — $354,041 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Ryman | Hour Phillips | $5,205,000 | $581,000 (9 earlier) |
| Willem de Kooning | Untitled XVIII Phillips | $4,869,000 | $35,231 (20 earlier) |
| Wade Guyton | Untitled Phillips | $4,645,000 | $2,165,000 (16 earlier) |
| Adolph von Menzel | Stehende Rüstungen (aus der Folge der Rüstkammer-Phantasien) Grisebach | $4,110,513 | $422,915 (77 earlier) |
| Frank Stella | Concentric Square Phillips | $3,973,000 | $81,250 (71 earlier) |
| Jan Brueghel the Elder | Still life with flowers in a clay vase im Kinsky | $2,820,480 | $951,710 (10 earlier) |
| Hans Hofmann | Orchestral Dominance in Green Phillips | $2,405,000 | $39,650 (7 earlier) |
| Martin Kippenberger | Untitled Phillips | $2,345,000 | $1,245,584 (108 earlier) |
| Tauba Auerbach | Untitled (Fold) Phillips | $2,285,000 | $1,818,632 (14 earlier) |
| Richard Prince | Untitled (Cowboy) Phillips | $1,805,000 | $1,167,738 (41 earlier) |
| George Bellows | Two Women Bonhams | $1,265,000 | $62,500 (14 earlier) |
| Julie Mehretu | Stadia Excerpt (a small resurgence) Phillips | $1,205,000 | $348,544 (7 earlier) |
| Caspar David Friedrich | Die Frau mit dem Spinnennetz zwischen kahlen Bäumen (Melancholie) Grisebach | $1,123,998 | $104,933 (4 earlier) |
| Yoshitomo Nara | Itchy and Scratchy Phillips | $1,025,000 | $557,410 (32 earlier) |
| Tom Wesselmann | Preliminary Painting for Tit and Telephone Phillips | $965,000 | $161,000 (169 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Van Ham (812)Lempertz (574)Phillips (559)Grisebach (485)Bonhams (372)im Kinsky (361)Levis Fine Art Auctions (359)James D. Julia (290)Van Sabben Poster Auctions (274)Strauss & Co (236)Ketterer Kunst (215)Whyte's (186)Sloans & Kenyon (153)Brunk Auctions (129)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (129)Pananti (102)Ravenel (81)Leonard Joel (78)Art+Object (77)Smith & Singer (70)Agra-Art (66)Clarke Auction Gallery (62)Toovey's (46)Galerie Kodl (45)SOGA (45)Art Auction East Africa (39)Bolsa de Arte (36)Palm Beach Modern Auctions (20)Artmark (1)