Art auction market report: March 2018
In March 2018, ArtSell recorded 4,104 auction lots from 30 auction houses, of which 3,094 sold (75% sell-through). The 3,053 sales with a published price total $171,521,827, with a median of $1,564 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Pablo Picasso, “La Dormeuse”, at $58,117,036 (Phillips). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top sales
| # | Work | Artist | House · date | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | La Dormeuse | Pablo Picasso | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $58,117,036 (£41,859,000) |
| 2 | Nu allongé I (Aurore) | Henri Matisse | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $20,630,236 (£14,859,000) |
| 3 | Helter Skelter I, 2007 | Mark Bradford | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $12,039,511 (£8,671,500) |
| 4 | Untitled, 2012 | Rudolf Stingel | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $7,978,441 (£5,746,500) |
| 5 | P.D. Idol, 1964 | Georg Baselitz | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $2,541,189 (£1,830,300) |
| 6 | Die Meistersinger, 1981 - 1982 | Anselm Kiefer | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $2,511,616 (£1,809,000) |
| 7 | The Pilgrim, 2006 | Marlene Dumas | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $2,324,529 (£1,674,250) |
| 8 | Space Transfiguration | José T. Joya | León Gallery · Mar 3, 2018 | $2,156,221 (₱112,128,000) |
| 9 | Profil Genre Aztèque, 1945 | Jean Dubuffet | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $2,011,792 (£1,449,000) |
| 10 | Woman & Man, 2008 | George Condo | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $1,845,184 (£1,329,000) |
| 11 | Grey Red, 2012 | Sean Scully | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $1,595,272 (£1,149,000) |
| 12 | Untitled, 1983 | Jean-Michel Basquiat | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $1,511,968 (£1,089,000) |
| 13 | Monochrome rose sans titre (MP 27), 1960 | Yves Klein | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $1,428,664 (£1,029,000) |
| 14 | Untitled, 1989 | Sigmar Polke | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $1,345,360 (£969,000) |
| 15 | Peinture 130 x 162 cm, 12 mai 1965, 1965 | Pierre Soulages | Phillips · Mar 8, 2018 | $1,295,377 (£933,000) |
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 | Rudolf Stingel American | $8,073,501 | 2 | Untitled — $7,978,441 |
| 2 | George Condo American | $2,886,357 | 2 | Woman & Man — $1,845,184 |
| 3 | Kaws American | $2,372,022 | 3 | Keep Moving — $1,256,874 |
| 4 | Sean Scully American | $1,597,241 | 2 | Grey Red — $1,595,272 |
| 5 | Jean-Michel Basquiat American | $1,511,968 | 1 | Untitled — $1,511,968 |
| 6 | Max Ernst German | $1,141,979 | 3 | Le Surréalisme et la peinture — $595,624 |
| 7 | Cy Twombly American | $845,536 | 1 | Untitled — $845,536 |
| 8 | Marcel Duchamp French | $695,588 | 1 | Feuille de vigne femelle — $695,588 |
| 9 | Josef Albers German | $528,980 | 1 | Homage to the Square — $528,980 |
| 10 | Jonas Wood American | $518,513 | 3 | Untitled (Gray Dots) — $233,331 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pablo Picasso Spanish | $58,215,176 | 13 | La Dormeuse — $58,117,036 |
| 2 | Henri Matisse French | $20,630,668 | 2 | Nu allongé I (Aurore) — $20,630,236 |
| 3 | Georg Baselitz German | $2,653,533 | 2 | P.D. Idol — $2,541,189 |
| 4 | Anselm Kiefer German | $2,511,616 | 1 | Die Meistersinger — $2,511,616 |
| 5 | Damien Hirst British | $2,226,904 | 4 | Apparition — $845,536 |
| 6 | Jean Dubuffet French | $2,011,792 | 1 | Profil Genre Aztèque — $2,011,792 |
| 7 | Henry Moore British | $1,953,838 | 7 | Two Three-Quarter Figures on Base — $1,012,144 |
| 8 | Yves Klein French | $1,428,664 | 1 | Monochrome rose sans titre (MP 27) — $1,428,664 |
| 9 | Sigmar Polke German | $1,345,360 | 1 | Untitled — $1,345,360 |
| 10 | Pierre Soulages French | $1,295,377 | 1 | Peinture 130 x 162 cm, 12 mai 1965 — $1,295,377 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pablo Picasso | La Dormeuse Phillips | $58,117,036 | $9,315,000 (1765 earlier) |
| Henri Matisse | Nu allongé I (Aurore) Phillips | $20,630,236 | $4,815,000 (172 earlier) |
| Mark Bradford | Helter Skelter I Phillips | $12,039,511 | $5,812,089 (22 earlier) |
| Rudolf Stingel | Untitled Phillips | $7,978,441 | $6,390,000 (45 earlier) |
| Georg Baselitz | P.D. Idol Phillips | $2,541,189 | $993,546 (209 earlier) |
| José T. Joya | Space Transfiguration León Gallery | $2,156,221 | $387,589 (83 earlier) |
| George Condo | Woman & Man Phillips | $1,845,184 | $1,549,526 (84 earlier) |
| Sean Scully | Grey Red Phillips | $1,595,272 | $1,396,122 (121 earlier) |
| Yves Klein | Monochrome rose sans titre (MP 27) Phillips | $1,428,664 | $268,162 (64 earlier) |
| Pierre Soulages | Peinture 130 x 162 cm, 12 mai 1965 Phillips | $1,295,377 | $440,325 (104 earlier) |
| Kaws | Keep Moving Phillips | $1,256,874 | $424,215 (103 earlier) |
| Lucian Freud | Small Naked Portrait Phillips | $1,095,448 | $189,434 (52 earlier) |
| Luc Tuymans | Singing in the Rain Phillips | $1,012,144 | $305,000 (20 earlier) |
| Allen Jones | T-riffic Phillips | $978,822 | $593,587 (57 earlier) |
| Marcel Duchamp | Feuille de vigne femelle Phillips | $695,588 | $477,540 (39 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Schmidt Kunstauktionen Dresden (454)Sloans & Kenyon (244)Artmark (238)Bonhams (232)Morgan O'Driscoll (226)Phillips (222)Art+Object (213)Lempertz (208)Brunk Auctions (193)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (190)Agra-Art (186)Wright (173)Maison Bibelot (164)León Gallery (133)SOGA (126)Crocker Farm (104)Leonard Joel (103)Capitolium Art (94)Pananti (80)Clarke Auction Gallery (73)Polswiss Art (70)Levis Fine Art Auctions (69)Cottone Auctions (66)Toovey's (49)Van Ham (47)Art Auction East Africa (47)Olympia Auctions (34)Palm Beach Modern Auctions (29)Smith & Singer (28)Colasanti Casa d'Aste (9)