Art auction market report: December 2023
In December 2023, ArtSell recorded 8,753 auction lots from 46 auction houses, of which 6,413 sold (73% sell-through). The 6,177 sales with a published price total $131,323,689, with a median of $2,174 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Paul Signac, “Sisteron”, at $8,580,000 (Bonhams). 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 | $3,020,954 | 33 | Friedrich II — $958,075 |
| 2 | Lyonel Feininger American | $730,026 | 11 | Karavellen — $410,604 |
| 3 | Sean Scully American | $677,531 | 4 | Cut Ground Blue Grey — $437,977 |
| 4 | Peter Halley American | $416,287 | 3 | Soul Control — $319,786 |
| 5 | Thomas Hart Benton American | $354,950 | 111 | Tetons Study for "The Sheepherder," 1955-60 — $40,000 |
| 6 | George Condo American | $290,137 | 3 | The Walrus — $164,241 |
| 7 | Robert Rauschenberg American | $281,254 | 6 | Holy Lattice (Urban Bourbon) — $273,736 |
| 8 | Willem de Kooning American | $261,939 | 2 | Garden Landscape — $260,049 |
| 9 | Max Oppenheimer Austrian | $246,362 | 1 | Bildnis Arthur Schnitzler — $246,362 |
| 10 | Jasper Johns American | $234,083 | 3 | Miscegenation — $191,872 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Signac French | $8,635,010 | 4 | Sisteron — $8,580,000 |
| 2 | Claude Monet French | $6,352,500 | 1 | La Seine près de Giverny — $6,352,500 |
| 3 | Wassily Kandinsky Russian | $4,272,809 | 5 | Murnau — $4,224,584 |
| 4 | Max Pechstein German | $4,082,852 | 9 | Self-portrait, reclining (Selbstbildnis, liegend) — $3,301,650 |
| 5 | Konrad Klapheck German | $3,782,175 | 4 | Die Jagd nach dem Glück — $2,659,764 |
| 6 | Gerhard Richter German | $3,652,693 | 21 | Alster (Hamburg) — $2,268,559 |
| 7 | Emil Nolde German | $2,917,763 | 14 | Nachmittagswolken, Friesland — $1,278,900 |
| 8 | Günther Uecker German | $2,099,287 | 5 | Wind — $1,026,509 |
| 9 | Ernst Ludwig Kirchner German | $1,921,832 | 11 | Alphütten und Tinzenhorn — $1,160,144 |
| 10 | Lovis Corinth German | $1,615,041 | 5 | Walchensee, aufgehender Mond — $985,449 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Signac | Sisteron Bonhams | $8,580,000 | $2,912,000 (71 earlier) |
| Claude Monet | La Seine près de Giverny Bonhams | $6,352,500 | $1,739,070 (10 earlier) |
| Wassily Kandinsky | Murnau Ketterer Kunst | $4,224,584 | $2,733,703 (187 earlier) |
| Max Pechstein | Self-portrait, reclining (Selbstbildnis, liegend) Lempertz | $3,301,650 | $2,592,810 (596 earlier) |
| Konrad Klapheck | Die Jagd nach dem Glück Ketterer Kunst | $2,659,764 | $700,005 (84 earlier) |
| Alfred Sisley | La Seine à Suresnes Bonhams | $1,270,500 | $808,275 (7 earlier) |
| Lovis Corinth | Walchensee, aufgehender Mond Ketterer Kunst | $985,449 | $787,547 (285 earlier) |
| Peter Paul Rubens | Święta Rodzina Polswiss Art | $958,573 | $355,736 (53 earlier) |
| Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec | Princeteau dans son atelier Bonhams | $762,500 | $406,695 (232 earlier) |
| Anto Carte | Bénédicité Bonhams | $455,913 | $64,950 (8 earlier) |
| Lucie Rie | Footed bowl Bonhams | $438,449 | $400,169 (373 earlier) |
| Pierre-Auguste Renoir | Femme assise dans un paysage Ketterer Kunst | $437,977 | $419,371 (251 earlier) |
| Carl Spitzweg | Der Postbote Ketterer Kunst | $383,230 | $198,338 (168 earlier) |
| Eugène Louis Boudin | Camaret. L'Estuaire Bonhams | $381,500 | $240,000 (30 earlier) |
| Mela Muter | Bretończyk Polswiss Art | $336,123 | $321,828 (122 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Bonhams (950)Lempertz (532)Phillips (492)Whyte's (426)Artmark (366)Grisebach (350)Capitolium Art (347)Levis Fine Art Auctions (317)Ketterer Kunst (305)Art+Object (304)Morton Subastas (296)Wright (289)Pananti (289)Agra-Art (248)Ravenel (222)Bertolami Fine Art (215)Toomey & Co. (214)Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) (202)Piguet Hôtel des Ventes (201)Rago Auctions (194)deVeres (167)León Gallery (167)Lyon & Turnbull (156)Arthouse Hejtmánek (134)Sloans & Kenyon (125)Maison Bibelot (116)Circle Auction (112)Grev Wedels Plass Auksjoner (105)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (99)Pandolfini (99)Clarke Auction Gallery (90)Anderson & Garland (88)Billings (88)Gliubich Casa d'Aste (67)Polswiss Art (64)Van Ham (49)Bolsa de Arte (43)Michaan's Auctions (41)Leonard Joel (39)Haynault (35)Sheffield Auction Gallery (35)Austin Auction Gallery (24)Olympia Auctions (21)Elstob & Elstob (15)Vogt Auction (8)Sworders (7)