Art auction market report: February 2016
In February 2016, ArtSell recorded 3,979 auction lots from 20 auction houses, of which 2,820 sold (71% sell-through). The 2,820 sales with a published price total $60,655,154, with a median of $2,048 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Piero Manzoni, “Achrome”, at $8,029,876 (Phillips). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top sales
| # | Work | Artist | House · date | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Achrome, 1958 | Piero Manzoni | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $8,029,876 (£5,570,500) |
| 2 | Junges Madchen Mit Zopf, 1911 | Alexej Jawlensky | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $3,186,436 (£2,210,500) |
| 3 | Legno, 1959 | Alberto Burri | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $2,863,540 (£1,986,500) |
| 4 | Stranger #45, 2011 | Glenn Ligon | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $2,056,300 (£1,426,500) |
| 5 | Concetto Spaziale, Attese, 1965 | Lucio Fontana | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $2,056,300 (£1,426,500) |
| 6 | Bain de Soleil, 1956 | Jean Dubuffet | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $1,733,404 (£1,202,500) |
| 7 | Bedtime Story, 1988 | Richard Prince | Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) · Feb 21, 2016 | $1,585,000 |
| 8 | Untitled, 1964 | Rotella | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $1,560,424 (£1,082,500) |
| 9 | Zuisouhen, 1986 | Kazuo Shiraga | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $1,473,934 (£1,022,500) |
| 10 | Enfold/Fold (inner)/Enfold/Fold (outer), 2010 | Tauba Auerbach | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $1,300,954 (£902,500) |
| 11 | Hydrastinine, 2007 | Damien Hirst | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $868,504 (£602,500) |
| 12 | Soir D’Hiver, 1961 | Paul Delvaux | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $730,120 (£506,500) |
| 13 | SP119, 2010 | Sterling Ruby | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $695,524 (£482,500) |
| 14 | Weeping and Crying, 1989 | Richard Prince | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $695,524 (£482,500) |
| 15 | Untitled (St. Maartin), 1969 | Cy Twombly | Phillips · Feb 9, 2016 | $660,928 (£458,500) |
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 | Richard Prince American | $2,288,649 | 3 | Bedtime Story — $1,585,000 |
| 2 | Tauba Auerbach American | $1,300,954 | 1 | Enfold/Fold (inner)/Enfold/Fold (outer) — $1,300,954 |
| 3 | George Condo American | $971,805 | 3 | Woman & Man — $557,140 |
| 4 | Sterling Ruby German | $901,940 | 3 | SP119 — $695,524 |
| 5 | Ilya Kabakov Ukrainian | $663,928 | 2 | Sobakin — $660,928 |
| 6 | Cy Twombly American | $660,928 | 1 | Untitled (St. Maartin) — $660,928 |
| 7 | Rudolf Stingel American | $653,609 | 2 | Untitled — $562,628 |
| 8 | Jim Hodges American | $591,736 | 1 | Angels Voices — $591,736 |
| 9 | Kaws American | $491,625 | 4 | Nyt (2908) — $280,372 |
| 10 | Andy Warhol American | $473,218 | 13 | Flowers (Four Yellow) — $160,855 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Piero Manzoni Italian | $8,029,876 | 1 | Achrome — $8,029,876 |
| 2 | Alberto Burri Italian | $2,863,540 | 1 | Legno — $2,863,540 |
| 3 | Lucio Fontana Italian | $2,121,806 | 2 | Concetto Spaziale, Attese — $2,056,300 |
| 4 | Jean Dubuffet French | $1,733,404 | 1 | Bain de Soleil — $1,733,404 |
| 5 | Rotella Italian | $1,560,424 | 1 | Untitled — $1,560,424 |
| 6 | Damien Hirst British | $1,022,161 | 6 | Hydrastinine — $868,504 |
| 7 | Paul Delvaux Belgian | $730,120 | 1 | Soir D’Hiver — $730,120 |
| 8 | L. S. Lowry British | $652,279 | 1 | Reservoir — $652,279 |
| 9 | Neo Rauch German | $626,332 | 1 | Gold — $626,332 |
| 10 | Anselm Kiefer German | $522,544 | 1 | Wege Der Weltweisheit - Die Herrmannsslacht — $522,544 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Piero Manzoni | Achrome Phillips | $8,029,876 | $157,467 (7 earlier) |
| Alberto Burri | Legno Phillips | $2,863,540 | $485,000 (7 earlier) |
| Glenn Ligon | Stranger #45 Phillips | $2,056,300 | $509,000 (23 earlier) |
| Jean Dubuffet | Bain de Soleil Phillips | $1,733,404 | $1,349,000 (54 earlier) |
| Rotella | Untitled Phillips | $1,560,424 | $149,000 (5 earlier) |
| Paul Delvaux | Soir D’Hiver Phillips | $730,120 | $120,243 (15 earlier) |
| Ilya Kabakov | Sobakin Phillips | $660,928 | $129,182 (4 earlier) |
| L. S. Lowry | Reservoir Phillips | $652,279 | $5,423 (10 earlier) |
| Arturo Luz | Magbabanig León Gallery | $441,504 | $134,166 (18 earlier) |
| Jean Fautrier | Construction Rectiligne Phillips | $384,160 | $9,087 (15 earlier) |
| Graham Sutherland | Hydrant with Black Ground Phillips | $314,968 | $20,488 (13 earlier) |
| Joseph Kosuth | North, East, South, West (From Art as Idea as Idea) Phillips | $228,478 | $77,320 (13 earlier) |
| José John Santos III | Untitled León Gallery | $220,752 | $193,508 (8 earlier) |
| Lee Aguinaldo | Linear Explosion No. 2 León Gallery | $206,035 | $87,724 (12 earlier) |
| Onib Olmedo | The Apartment León Gallery | $117,734 | $16,778 (13 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
im Kinsky (670)Phillips (505)Pananti (481)Art+Object (345)Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) (323)Wright (268)James D. Julia (244)Whyte's (206)León Gallery (189)Artmark (157)Sloans & Kenyon (149)Leonard Joel (86)Clarke Auction Gallery (76)Agra-Art (62)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (60)Bonhams (54)Toovey's (44)Polswiss Art (28)Capitolium Art (25)Sworders (7)