Art auction market report: May 2017
In May 2017, ArtSell recorded 5,628 auction lots from 29 auction houses, of which 4,192 sold (74% sell-through). The 4,192 sales with a published price total $210,107,547, with a median of $3,314 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Peter Doig, “Rosedale”, at $28,810,000 (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 | $13,416,875 | 3 | Untitled II — $13,130,000 |
| 2 | Jean-Michel Basquiat American | $12,976,000 | 10 | Untitled — $3,610,000 |
| 3 | Roy Lichtenstein American | $10,509,444 | 14 | Woman: Sunlight, Moonlight — $10,330,000 |
| 4 | Agnes Martin American | $3,956,000 | 2 | Untitled #1 — $3,946,000 |
| 5 | Ellsworth Kelly American | $3,128,125 | 4 | Dark Blue Relief — $3,105,000 |
| 6 | Rudolf Stingel American | $2,920,620 | 3 | Untitled — $2,350,000 |
| 7 | Alexander Calder American | $2,553,463 | 10 | Two Red Petals in the Air — $2,410,000 |
| 8 | Donald Judd American | $1,964,000 | 2 | Untitled — $1,174,000 |
| 9 | Andy Warhol American | $1,880,679 | 62 | Oberkassel 1 — $225,000 |
| 10 | Keith Haring American | $1,713,233 | 20 | Keith and Julia — $970,000 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter Doig Scottish | $29,497,795 | 2 | Rosedale — $28,810,000 |
| 2 | Damien Hirst British | $5,345,118 | 11 | The Void — $5,250,000 |
| 3 | Eugene von Guerard Austrian | $2,292,358 | 3 | Breakneck Gorge, Hepburn Springs 1864 — $1,458,359 |
| 4 | David Hockney British | $2,029,836 | 6 | Three Oranges with a Vase — $1,990,000 |
| 5 | Marc Chagall Belarusian | $1,984,651 | 9 | La joie au cirque — $1,930,000 |
| 6 | Toyen Czech | $1,524,600 | 1 | Twilight in rainforest — $1,524,600 |
| 7 | Arthur Boyd British | $1,441,072 | 11 | Bride and Bridegroom with Rainbow 1960 — $452,201 |
| 8 | Giorgio de Chirico Italian | $1,331,484 | 1 | Forgotten toys — $1,331,484 |
| 9 | Emil Filla Czech | $1,245,090 | 3 | Still life with a clock — $538,692 |
| 10 | Anselm Kiefer German | $970,000 | 1 | Merkaba — $970,000 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Doig | Rosedale Phillips | $28,810,000 | $373,014 (28 earlier) |
| Willem de Kooning | Untitled II Phillips | $13,130,000 | $11,365,000 (38 earlier) |
| Damien Hirst | The Void Phillips | $5,250,000 | $1,150,000 (260 earlier) |
| Marlene Dumas | Colorfields Phillips | $4,170,000 | $2,517,000 (43 earlier) |
| Ellsworth Kelly | Dark Blue Relief Phillips | $3,105,000 | $52,500 (153 earlier) |
| Lee Krasner | Gold or Silver Phillips | $1,690,000 | $15,000 (6 earlier) |
| Toyen | Twilight in rainforest Galerie Kodl | $1,524,600 | $830,016 (8 earlier) |
| Eugene von Guerard | Breakneck Gorge, Hepburn Springs 1864 Smith & Singer | $1,458,359 | $1,306,309 (28 earlier) |
| Kenneth Noland | Bridge Phillips | $1,450,000 | $605,000 (33 earlier) |
| Sean Scully | Wall of Light Green Phillips | $1,396,122 | $845,681 (114 earlier) |
| Marsden Hartley | Landscape No. 39 (Little River, New Hampshire) Bonhams | $1,387,500 | $305,000 (11 earlier) |
| Adolph Gottlieb | Shadows Phillips | $1,030,000 | $161,000 (28 earlier) |
| František Kupka | Bathing Galerie Kodl | $691,152 | $476,420 (23 earlier) |
| Tony Cragg | Elliptical Column Phillips | $586,000 | $209,000 (23 earlier) |
| Louise Nevelson | Dawn's Landscape XLIV Phillips | $514,000 | $266,500 (74 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Lempertz (1,093)Phillips (501)Rago Auctions (422)Van Ham (390)Artmark (347)Bonhams (266)Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) (249)Brunk Auctions (228)Maison Bibelot (202)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (194)Pananti (193)Whyte's (178)Morgan O'Driscoll (155)Ketterer Kunst (139)Menzies (134)Grisebach (120)Smith & Singer (109)Clarke Auction Gallery (103)Levis Fine Art Auctions (93)Galerie Kodl (86)Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner (74)Leonard Joel (72)Polswiss Art (63)Agra-Art (58)Toovey's (53)Capitolium Art (39)Bolsa de Arte (28)Palm Beach Modern Auctions (28)Cottone Auctions (11)