Art auction market report: November 2015
In November 2015, ArtSell recorded 6,638 auction lots from 30 auction houses, of which 5,284 sold (80% sell-through). The 5,248 sales with a published price total $171,125,894, with a median of $4,674 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Willem de Kooning, “Untitled XXVIII”, at $11,365,000 (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 | Willem de Kooning American | $11,365,000 | 1 | Untitled XXVIII — $11,365,000 |
| 2 | Christopher Wool American | $4,226,000 | 2 | Untitled (P271) — $3,189,000 |
| 3 | Alexander Calder American | $4,065,500 | 4 | Untitled — $3,973,000 |
| 4 | Wade Guyton American | $2,413,750 | 2 | Untitled — $2,405,000 |
| 5 | Mark Grotjahn American | $1,925,000 | 1 | Untitled (Brown Butterfly Purple) — $1,925,000 |
| 6 | Joan Mitchell American | $1,925,000 | 1 | Untitled — $1,925,000 |
| 7 | Roy Lichtenstein American | $1,716,917 | 7 | Face — $1,565,000 |
| 8 | Rudolf Stingel American | $1,685,000 | 1 | Untitled — $1,685,000 |
| 9 | Andy Warhol American | $1,549,693 | 29 | Flowers — $174,570 |
| 10 | John Currin American | $1,505,000 | 1 | Birthday — $1,505,000 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Le Corbusier Swiss | $4,783,750 | 6 | Femme rouge et pelote verte — $4,645,000 |
| 2 | Giorgio de Chirico Italian | $3,973,000 | 1 | Gladiateurs au Repos — $3,973,000 |
| 3 | Michelangelo Pistoletto Italian | $2,411,297 | 3 | Gruppo di persone — $2,405,000 |
| 4 | Emil Nolde German | $1,966,921 | 16 | Helles Sonnenblumenbild — $1,108,954 |
| 5 | Karl Hofer Swiss | $1,835,107 | 16 | Sitzender Akt mit blauem Kissen — $739,656 |
| 6 | Thomas Schütte German | $1,805,000 | 1 | Maschine — $1,805,000 |
| 7 | Gerhard Richter German | $1,727,488 | 43 | Cage f.ff. — $177,527 |
| 8 | Marino Marini Italian | $1,687,731 | 2 | Piccolo cavallo — $1,685,000 |
| 9 | Max Beckmann German | $1,648,911 | 13 | Bildnis eines jungen Mädchens (nicht vollendet)“. (Vor) 1939 — $1,299,970 |
| 10 | Arthur Boyd British | $1,553,273 | 8 | Sleeping Bride (1957-1958) — $1,144,251 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Willem de Kooning | Untitled XXVIII Phillips | $11,365,000 | $4,869,000 (25 earlier) |
| Le Corbusier | Femme rouge et pelote verte Phillips | $4,645,000 | $131,250 (73 earlier) |
| Alexander Calder | Untitled Phillips | $3,973,000 | $2,965,000 (210 earlier) |
| Giorgio de Chirico | Gladiateurs au Repos Phillips | $3,973,000 | $192,638 (30 earlier) |
| Michelangelo Pistoletto | Gruppo di persone Phillips | $2,405,000 | $1,007,780 (52 earlier) |
| Robert Gober | The Sad Sink Phillips | $2,225,000 | $399,896 (7 earlier) |
| Joan Mitchell | Untitled Phillips | $1,925,000 | $749,000 (12 earlier) |
| Marino Marini | Piccolo cavallo Phillips | $1,685,000 | $79,999 (117 earlier) |
| Jean Dubuffet | Paysage au château (avec 3 personnages) Phillips | $1,349,000 | $605,000 (53 earlier) |
| Beatriz Milhazes | O Moderno Phillips | $1,265,000 | $43,750 (5 earlier) |
| Maurizio Cattelan | Frank and Jamie Phillips | $1,205,000 | $427,226 (17 earlier) |
| Henry Moore | Torso Phillips | $1,085,000 | $125,190 (142 earlier) |
| Karl Hofer | Sitzender Akt mit blauem Kissen Grisebach | $739,656 | $650,728 (242 earlier) |
| Cindy Sherman | Untitled Film Still (#36) Phillips | $701,000 | $462,099 (67 earlier) |
| Albin Egger-Lienz | Drei Schnitter im Kinsky | $640,764 | $88,348 (6 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Lempertz (1,265)Van Ham (856)Grisebach (575)Phillips (504)im Kinsky (448)James D. Julia (302)Bonhams (271)Strauss & Co (262)Levis Fine Art Auctions (247)Brunk Auctions (226)Sloans & Kenyon (196)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (166)Whyte's (162)Ketterer Kunst (130)Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner (130)Art+Object (125)Leonard Joel (102)Artmark (91)Smith & Singer (91)Ravenel (86)Clarke Auction Gallery (70)Agra-Art (57)Galerie Kodl (48)SOGA (47)Pananti (45)Toovey's (43)Art Auction East Africa (42)Polswiss Art (28)Cottone Auctions (22)Olympia Auctions (1)