Art auction market report: August 2018
In August 2018, ArtSell recorded 1,339 auction lots from 13 auction houses, of which 1,015 sold (76% sell-through). The 1,015 sales with a published price total $15,297,028, with a median of $1,392 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Arthur Boyd, “Drowned Bridegroom (1959)”, at $1,435,442 (Smith & Singer). 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 | Andy Warhol American | $830,684 | 2 | Head After Picasso 1985 — $819,462 |
| 2 | William Wendt American | $360,000 | 3 | Patriarchs of the Grove — $300,000 |
| 3 | Armin Carl Hansen American | $150,000 | 2 | Cowboy Sport (Bulldogging) — $125,000 |
| 4 | Guy Rose American | $145,000 | 1 | Laguna Beach — $145,000 |
| 5 | Sydney Laurence American | $108,125 | 4 | Mount McKinley, 63° North Latitude, Alaska, Altitude 20.390 Feet — $75,000 |
| 6 | Edgar Alwin Payne American | $75,625 | 4 | Trees along the foothills — $25,000 |
| 7 | Walter L. Greene American | $75,000 | 1 | The construction of the Golden Gate Bridge — $75,000 |
| 8 | Charles Reiffel American | $72,500 | 1 | The Apple Barn — $72,500 |
| 9 | Alfred R. Mitchell American | $72,500 | 2 | Sunset glow — $62,500 |
| 10 | William Frederic Ritschel American | $58,750 | 2 | Toilers, Katwijk, Holland — $35,000 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arthur Boyd British | $1,824,710 | 6 | Drowned Bridegroom (1959) — $1,435,442 |
| 2 | Jean Arp French | $592,353 | 2 | Torse Fruit — $591,834 |
| 3 | Auguste Rodin French | $546,308 | 1 | La Femme Accroupie, Grand Modèle avec une Terrasse Plus Haute — $546,308 |
| 4 | John Glover British | $103,172 | 1 | A Lake Scene in Cumberland (circa 1835) — $103,172 |
| 5 | Jan Matejko Polish | $62,289 | 1 | Głowa konia króla J.Sobieskiego do obrazu Sobieski pod Wiedniem, 1883 r. — $62,289 |
| 6 | Mela Muter French | $54,164 | 1 | Solitude (Samotność) — $54,164 |
| 7 | Jacek Malczewski Polish | $50,373 | 3 | Autoportret z paletą — $23,291 |
| 8 | Wojciech Kossak Polish | $34,936 | 2 | Drużbowie, ok. 1910 r. — $24,374 |
| 9 | Jonathan Kenworthy British | $33,125 | 2 | The Migration — $21,250 |
| 10 | Nicholas Harding British | $25,120 | 1 | In the Swell (White Hat and Rubber Ring) 2006 — $25,120 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jean Arp | Torse Fruit Menzies | $591,834 | $582,963 (99 earlier) |
| Rupert Bunny | A Provincial Town in France (1904) Une Ville De Province Smith & Singer | $358,861 | $356,372 (55 earlier) |
| Godfrey Miller | Summer (1955-1957) Smith & Singer | $170,459 | $91,068 (13 earlier) |
| John Glover | A Lake Scene in Cumberland (circa 1835) Smith & Singer | $103,172 | $75,293 (12 earlier) |
| Charles Reiffel | The Apple Barn Bonhams | $72,500 | $62,500 (27 earlier) |
| Alfred R. Mitchell | Sunset glow Bonhams | $62,500 | $48,800 (47 earlier) |
| Jules Eugene Pages | Window Shopping, Chinatown, San Francisco Bonhams | $28,750 | $23,750 (19 earlier) |
| Nicholas Harding | In the Swell (White Hat and Rubber Ring) 2006 Smith & Singer | $25,120 | $22,552 (10 earlier) |
| Sam Leach | Nolens Volens Deer 2008 Menzies | $20,031 | $10,304 (8 earlier) |
| William Samuel Parrott | Shoshone Falls (Snake River, Idaho) Bonhams | $18,750 | $10,640 (7 earlier) |
| Tony de Lautour | Island Art+Object | $17,635 | $17,456 (67 earlier) |
| Abraham Neumann | Wieś jesienią Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny | $14,083 | $7,178 (3 earlier) |
| Henrietta Berk | Racing Bonhams | $10,625 | $2,988 (4 earlier) |
| Czesław Wasilewski | Po polowaniu Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny | $9,479 | $7,864 (9 earlier) |
| Ciaran Clear | Moonlight, Co. Donegal Morgan O'Driscoll | $7,193 | $6,318 (35 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Helmuth Stone Gallery (250)Morgan O'Driscoll (194)Menzies (164)Bonhams (141)Van Ham (114)Clarke Auction Gallery (113)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (104)Art+Object (80)Smith & Singer (67)Toovey's (61)Jackson's International Auctioneers (40)Leonard Joel (9)Agra-Art (2)