Art auction market report: July 2020
In July 2020, ArtSell recorded 7,695 auction lots from 37 auction houses, of which 5,848 sold (76% sell-through). The 5,848 sales with a published price total $181,707,370, with a median of $3,012 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Joan Mitchell, “Noël”, at $11,062,500 (Phillips). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top sales
| # | Work | Artist | House · date | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Noël, 1961-1962 | Joan Mitchell | Phillips · Jul 2, 2020 | $11,062,500 |
| 2 | Victor 25448, 1987 | Jean-Michel Basquiat | Phillips · Jul 2, 2020 | $9,250,000 |
| 3 | 22.6.63, 1963 | Zao Wou-ki | Phillips · Jul 8, 2020 | $7,007,619 (HK$54,310,000) |
| 4 | 24.10.63, 1963 | Zao Wou-ki | Phillips · Jul 8, 2020 | $5,982,476 (HK$46,365,000) |
| 5 | Abstraktes Bild (801-3), 1994 | Gerhard Richter | Phillips · Jul 2, 2020 | $3,680,000 |
| 6 | Choir of Angels (Red), 1999 | Liu Ye | Phillips · Jul 8, 2020 | $3,580,583 (HK$27,750,000) |
| 7 | Head of the Meadow, 1967 | Helen Frankenthaler | Phillips · Jul 2, 2020 | $3,020,000 |
| 8 | Christiane und Kerstin, 1968 | Gerhard Richter | Ketterer Kunst · Jul 17, 2020 | $2,908,426 (€2,545,000) |
| 9 | Your Puppy, 2016 | Yoshitomo Nara | Ravenel · Jul 19, 2020 | $2,175,666 (NT$64,160,000) |
| 10 | Monkey Poison, 2004 | Banksy | Phillips · Jul 2, 2020 | $2,000,000 |
| 11 | Pumpkin(B), 1991 | Yayoi Kusama | Ravenel · Jul 19, 2020 | $1,757,894 (NT$51,840,000) |
| 12 | 5 Mai 1978, 1978 | Chu Teh-chun | Ravenel · Jul 19, 2020 | $1,681,936 (NT$49,600,000) |
| 13 | Wisdom Tooth Fever, 1999 | Yoshitomo Nara | Phillips · Jul 8, 2020 | $1,645,133 (HK$12,750,000) |
| 14 | Green River, Wyoming, 1883 | Thomas Moran | Coeur d'Alene Art Auction · Jul 25, 2020 | $1,638,000 |
| 15 | COMPANION (DETAIL OF CROWD SHOT), 2000 | Kaws | Phillips · Jul 2, 2020 | $1,380,000 |
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 | Joan Mitchell American | $11,201,250 | 4 | Noël — $11,062,500 |
| 2 | Jean-Michel Basquiat American | $9,251,649 | 3 | Victor 25448 — $9,250,000 |
| 3 | Kaws American | $3,353,616 | 34 | COMPANION (DETAIL OF CROWD SHOT) — $1,380,000 |
| 4 | Helen Frankenthaler American | $3,067,500 | 2 | Head of the Meadow — $3,020,000 |
| 5 | Thomas Moran American | $1,756,825 | 2 | Green River, Wyoming — $1,638,000 |
| 6 | Eddie Martinez American | $1,452,993 | 5 | You Come Up Short — $595,344 |
| 7 | Andy Warhol American | $1,366,757 | 46 | Mick Jagger — $228,560 |
| 8 | George Condo American | $1,343,328 | 7 | Stump Head — $1,050,000 |
| 9 | Lyonel Feininger American | $1,078,045 | 15 | Manhattan, Dusk — $371,410 |
| 10 | Roy Lichtenstein American | $783,006 | 30 | Water Lilies - Blue Lily Pads, from Water Lilies Series — $162,500 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zao Wou-ki French | $13,035,530 | 6 | 22.6.63 — $7,007,619 |
| 2 | Gerhard Richter German | $8,260,841 | 21 | Abstraktes Bild (801-3) — $3,680,000 |
| 3 | Ernst Ludwig Kirchner German | $2,307,684 | 33 | Heimkehrender Heuer — $642,825 |
| 4 | Banksy British | $2,052,500 | 2 | Monkey Poison — $2,000,000 |
| 5 | Emil Nolde German | $1,920,142 | 19 | Südsee Landschaft II — $1,076,356 |
| 6 | Günther Uecker German | $1,919,942 | 6 | Ohne Titel — $657,110 |
| 7 | Sigmar Polke German | $1,635,289 | 13 | Ohne Titel (Würfel) — $851,386 |
| 8 | Alexej von Jawlensky Russian | $1,328,137 | 9 | Landschaft mit Bäumen“ (Murnau) — $425,325 |
| 9 | Tony Cragg British | $1,053,842 | 9 | Never Mind — $614,255 |
| 10 | Pablo Picasso Spanish | $968,620 | 40 | Portrait de jeune fille, d’après Cranach le Jeune (Portrait of a Young Woman, After Cranach the Younger) — $728,000 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joan Mitchell | Noël Phillips | $11,062,500 | $4,201,189 (34 earlier) |
| Liu Ye | Choir of Angels (Red) Phillips | $3,580,583 | $3,393,090 (9 earlier) |
| Helen Frankenthaler | Head of the Meadow Phillips | $3,020,000 | $1,635,000 (117 earlier) |
| Banksy | Monkey Poison Phillips | $2,000,000 | $1,150,076 (145 earlier) |
| Julio González | L'arlequin / Pierrot ou Colombine Phillips | $920,000 | $127,170 (8 earlier) |
| Nicolas Party | Still Life Phillips | $762,567 | $608,000 (19 earlier) |
| Maxfield Parrish | Humpty Dumpty Phillips | $740,000 | $77,000 (14 earlier) |
| Bernard Buffet | Toréro Debout Ravenel | $610,380 | $550,368 (185 earlier) |
| John Koch | Siesta Bonhams | $596,075 | $50,000 (6 earlier) |
| Ali Banisadr | Motherboard Phillips | $572,000 | $456,780 (4 earlier) |
| Hans Grundig | Schüler mit roter Mütze Grisebach | $524,568 | $186,400 (3 earlier) |
| Wolfgang Paalen | Avertissement I (Peinture) Grisebach | $439,503 | $172,954 (5 earlier) |
| Ansel Adams | Winter Sunrise, Sierra Nevada from Lone Pine California Phillips | $412,500 | $93,750 (94 earlier) |
| Ernest L. Blumenschein | White Sun Coeur d'Alene Art Auction | $357,000 | $315,900 (9 earlier) |
| Francis Picabia | Portrait de femme Phillips | $350,000 | $166,664 (18 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Phillips (1,170)León Gallery (559)Grisebach (449)Ketterer Kunst (408)Pandolfini (399)Van Sabben Poster Auctions (345)Twents Veilinghuis (325)Pananti (287)Bonhams (262)Helmuth Stone Gallery (255)Morgan O'Driscoll (249)Wright (248)Rago Auctions (244)Coeur d'Alene Art Auction (239)Whyte's (232)Ravenel (210)Agra-Art (145)Maison Bibelot (144)Sloans & Kenyon (137)Davidson Auctions (114)Artmark (104)Toovey's (99)Sworders (97)Leonard Joel (96)Arthouse Hejtmánek (95)Menzies (94)Lyon & Turnbull (93)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (91)Farsettiarte (83)Brunk Auctions (81)Van Ham (80)Capitolium Art (77)deVeres (73)Clarke Auction Gallery (64)Michaan's Auctions (36)Colasanti Casa d'Aste (10)Piguet Hôtel des Ventes (1)