Art auction market report: March 2020
In March 2020, ArtSell recorded 6,154 auction lots from 37 auction houses, of which 4,412 sold (72% sell-through). The 4,382 sales with a published price total $28,791,764, with a median of $1,282 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Jacek Malczewski, “ARTYSTA I CHIMERA”, at $864,312 (Agra-Art). 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 | Ed Clark American | $748,750 | 3 | Untitled (Acrylic #1) from the series Louisiana — $462,500 |
| 2 | Frederic Remington American | $662,725 | 3 | The Broncho Buster — $437,575 |
| 3 | Kaws American | $481,250 | 3 | UNTITLED (KIMPSONS), PACKAGE PAINTING SERIES — $350,000 |
| 4 | Noah Davis American | $400,000 | 1 | In Search of Gallerius Maximumianus — $400,000 |
| 5 | Peter Halley American | $400,000 | 1 | Nowhere — $400,000 |
| 6 | Richard Prince American | $309,375 | 2 | Untitled (Original) — $300,000 |
| 7 | David Drake American | $294,000 | 2 | Outstanding Stoneware Jar Inscribed "Lm / Dave / Decr. 17 1857" Edgefield District, SC — $216,000 |
| 8 | Pat Steir American | $275,000 | 1 | The Wave (after Courbet, as though painted by an Italian Baroque Painter) — $275,000 |
| 9 | Paul McCarthy American | $255,000 | 3 | Captain Dick Hat — $187,500 |
| 10 | Joseph Raphael American | $242,175 | 4 | Tulip Field — $187,575 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacek Malczewski Polish | $1,578,387 | 5 | ARTYSTA I CHIMERA — $864,312 |
| 2 | Wojciech Fangor Polish | $445,405 | 4 | Square 21 — $147,648 |
| 3 | Igor Mitoraj Polish | $436,172 | 4 | Całujący anioł — $418,336 |
| 4 | Nicolae Grigorescu Romanian | $427,214 | 6 | Țărăncuță cu fuior pe cale — $238,546 |
| 5 | Werner Berg Austrian | $284,800 | 1 | Kegler, Sommerabend — $284,800 |
| 6 | Henryk Stażewski Polish | $266,264 | 5 | Relief 20 — $135,344 |
| 7 | Martha Jungwirth Austrian | $266,239 | 13 | Untitled — $117,146 |
| 8 | Nicolas Party Swiss | $237,500 | 1 | Untitled (Landscape) — $237,500 |
| 9 | Tadeusz Brzozowski Polish | $232,803 | 3 | MASTIFF (CWAJNOS) — $217,664 |
| 10 | Albin Egger-Lienz Austrian | $218,299 | 2 | Schnitter (Mower) — $216,448 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacek Malczewski | ARTYSTA I CHIMERA Agra-Art | $864,312 | $385,646 (162 earlier) |
| Ed Clark | Untitled (Acrylic #1) from the series Louisiana Phillips | $462,500 | $337,500 (5 earlier) |
| Igor Mitoraj | Całujący anioł Polswiss Art | $418,336 | $201,878 (171 earlier) |
| Werner Berg | Kegler, Sommerabend im Kinsky | $284,800 | $265,459 (30 earlier) |
| Tadeusz Brzozowski | MASTIFF (CWAJNOS) Whyte's | $217,664 | $96,292 (56 earlier) |
| David Drake | Outstanding Stoneware Jar Inscribed "Lm / Dave / Decr. 17 1857" Edgefield District, SC Crocker Farm | $216,000 | $46,000 (11 earlier) |
| Elmer Wachtel | The California Coast Bonhams | $168,825 | $65,500 (57 earlier) |
| Martha Jungwirth | Untitled im Kinsky | $117,146 | $71,524 (38 earlier) |
| Jan Lebensztejn | Le Parquet (Trybunał) Polswiss Art | $83,667 | $62,530 (405 earlier) |
| Yoan Capote | Racional Phillips | $68,750 | $43,750 (7 earlier) |
| Włodzimierz Tetmajer | WESELE W BRONOWICACH Agra-Art | $64,126 | $28,902 (23 earlier) |
| Aleksander Świeszewski | Pejzaż alpejski Polswiss Art | $56,598 | $26,233 (19 earlier) |
| Luis Feito | Untitled Phillips | $56,250 | $38,829 (8 earlier) |
| Zofia Stryjeńska | Tańce polskie Polswiss Art | $51,677 | $41,216 (69 earlier) |
| Alfred Leslie | Untitled (Seated Figure) Phillips | $50,000 | $25,000 (7 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Rago Auctions (542)im Kinsky (499)Davidson Auctions (384)Schmidt Kunstauktionen Dresden (356)Rachel Davis Fine Arts (346)León Gallery (309)Pananti (270)Bonhams (244)Helmuth Stone Gallery (229)Morgan O'Driscoll (224)Maison Bibelot (223)Artmark (213)Whyte's (196)Phillips (195)Agra-Art (184)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (154)Brunk Auctions (152)Levis Fine Art Auctions (146)Farsettiarte (131)Van Ham (126)Lempertz (119)Pandolfini (101)Toovey's (94)Crocker Farm (94)Clarke Auction Gallery (88)Polswiss Art (85)Leonard Joel (77)Circle Auction (74)Wright (68)SOGA (57)Cottone Auctions (47)Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner (36)Michaan's Auctions (35)Bogotá Auctions (30)Morton Subastas (12)Jackson's International Auctioneers (8)Sworders (6)