Art auction market report: May 2021
In May 2021, ArtSell recorded 7,341 auction lots from 35 auction houses, of which 6,063 sold (83% sell-through). The 6,063 sales with a published price total $56,747,969, with a median of $1,806 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Tiffany Studios, “Important Dandelion lamp”, at $3,745,000 (Rago Auctions). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top sales
| # | Work | Artist | House · date | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Important Dandelion lamp, 1900 | Tiffany Studios | Rago Auctions · May 13, 2021 | $3,745,000 |
| 2 | The Night Party (Fireworks), 1929 | Toyen | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $1,740,461 (CZK 36,480,000) |
| 3 | The Fair, 1925 | Toyen | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $1,442,750 (CZK 30,240,000) |
| 4 | Bathing, 1904 | František Kupka | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $1,202,292 (CZK 25,200,000) |
| 5 | Nude with Blue Hair (from the Nude series), 1994 | Roy Lichtenstein | Rago Auctions · May 19, 2021 | $769,000 |
| 6 | Bottle of Wine and Plate of Apples, 1913-1914 | Emil Filla | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $755,726 (CZK 15,840,000) |
| 7 | Yawl in the Channel, 1974-75 | Fairfield Porter | Bonhams · May 20, 2021 | $725,313 |
| 8 | Still Life with Lilies | Irma Stern | Strauss & Co · May 18, 2021 | $447,769 (ZAR 6,259,000) |
| 9 | Torso I., 1930 | František Muzika | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $406,489 (CZK 8,520,000) |
| 10 | Untitled (Stack), 1957 | Peter Voulkos | Rago Auctions · May 14, 2021 | $400,000 |
| 11 | Grand Mapogga II | Alexis Preller | Strauss & Co · May 18, 2021 | $390,780 (ZAR 5,462,400) |
| 12 | Farewell on the Seashore, 1922–1924 | Jakub Schikaneder | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $377,863 (CZK 7,920,000) |
| 13 | Rio San Gregorio, 1928 | Jan Zrzavý | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $372,138 (CZK 7,800,000) |
| 14 | Orpheus, 1957 | Josef Šíma | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $360,688 (CZK 7,560,000) |
| 15 | Joyful Boats, 1962 | Jan Zrzavý | Galerie Kodl · May 30, 2021 | $320,611 (CZK 6,720,000) |
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 | Roy Lichtenstein American | $917,765 | 8 | Nude with Blue Hair (from the Nude series) — $769,000 |
| 2 | Fairfield Porter American | $756,875 | 2 | Yawl in the Channel — $725,313 |
| 3 | Peter Voulkos American | $412,625 | 3 | Untitled (Stack) — $400,000 |
| 4 | John Wesley American | $312,500 | 1 | Chateau — $312,500 |
| 5 | Peter Beard American | $289,740 | 3 | Francis Bacon on his roof at 80 Narrow Street, London (soon to be lost gambling), during the dead elephant interviews, March — $142,370 |
| 6 | Ed Ruscha American | $278,750 | 9 | Cheese Mold Standard with Olive — $112,500 |
| 7 | Keith Haring American | $273,341 | 6 | Growing Suite — $262,500 |
| 8 | Dale Chihuly American | $268,683 | 21 | Persian and Horn Chandelier — $125,000 |
| 9 | Andy Warhol American | $239,053 | 30 | Chicken 'n Dumplings (from the Campbell's Soup II portfolio) — $43,750 |
| 10 | Henry Ossawa Tanner American | $237,813 | 1 | Return from the Cross — $237,813 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toyen Czech | $3,320,616 | 3 | The Night Party (Fireworks) — $1,740,461 |
| 2 | Josef Šíma French | $1,274,430 | 7 | Orpheus — $360,688 |
| 3 | František Kupka Czech | $1,217,178 | 2 | Bathing — $1,202,292 |
| 4 | Jan Zrzavý Czech | $900,001 | 4 | Rio San Gregorio — $372,138 |
| 5 | Emil Filla Czech | $755,726 | 1 | Bottle of Wine and Plate of Apples — $755,726 |
| 6 | Vaclav Radimsky German | $601,146 | 6 | On the River Epte — $200,382 |
| 7 | František Muzika Czech | $406,489 | 1 | Torso I. — $406,489 |
| 8 | Jakub Schikaneder Czech | $377,863 | 1 | Farewell on the Seashore — $377,863 |
| 9 | František Janoušek Czech | $280,535 | 2 | Lovers II — $188,932 |
| 10 | Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski Polish | $263,560 | 1 | Wilki zimą — $263,560 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tiffany Studios | Important Dandelion lamp Rago Auctions | $3,745,000 | $515,475 (2130 earlier) |
| Toyen | The Night Party (Fireworks) Galerie Kodl | $1,740,461 | $1,524,600 (18 earlier) |
| Fairfield Porter | Yawl in the Channel Bonhams | $725,313 | $15,000 (22 earlier) |
| Paul Evans | Important and Early Sculpture Front cabinet Rago Auctions | $312,500 | $125,000 (157 earlier) |
| John Wesley | Chateau Rago Auctions | $312,500 | $112,500 (20 earlier) |
| Sydney Kumalo | Saint Francis Strauss & Co | $268,661 | $206,846 (44 earlier) |
| Fritz Scholder | Indian with Peace Medal Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) | $225,000 | $46,800 (45 earlier) |
| Jan Bauch | Garden I Galerie Kodl | $166,031 | $54,576 (22 earlier) |
| Norbert Schwontkowski | Purple Haze Grisebach | $161,809 | $136,789 (67 earlier) |
| Josef Lada | Water Goblin Galerie Kodl | $160,306 | $130,493 (45 earlier) |
| Keith Alexander | The Distinguished Guest Strauss & Co | $150,613 | $71,382 (15 earlier) |
| Jacek Yerka | LETNIA MADERA Agra-Art | $126,206 | $59,572 (659 earlier) |
| Dale Chihuly | Persian and Horn Chandelier Rago Auctions | $125,000 | $87,500 (218 earlier) |
| Paul Wonner | Dutch Still Life with Flowers Cartons and Desserts Rago Auctions | $118,750 | $96,000 (53 earlier) |
| Louis Comfort Tiffany | Market at the Mosque of Abu el Haggag, Luxor, Egypt Bonhams | $106,563 | $50,400 (38 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Rago Auctions (790)Auktionshaus Mehlis (564)im Kinsky (533)Pananti (348)Art+Object (346)Strauss & Co (328)Toomey & Co. (317)Davidson Auctions (298)Levis Fine Art Auctions (282)Sloans & Kenyon (275)Sworders (249)Morgan O'Driscoll (233)Clarke Auction Gallery (217)Bonhams (212)Galerie Kodl (212)deVeres (199)Brunk Auctions (198)Artmark (185)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (185)Van Ham (181)Whyte's (163)Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) (158)Farsettiarte (145)Phillips (124)HAUS Galerii (111)Palm Beach Modern Auctions (92)Grisebach (76)Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner (63)Leonard Joel (55)Agra-Art (51)Olympia Auctions (47)Lyon & Turnbull (44)Michaan's Auctions (30)Cottone Auctions (29)Bolsa de Arte (1)