So where exactly are you parking your millions of dollars during the recession? Apparently, buying an Old Master painting is a good bet- Christie’s first major Old Masters sale since the September financial collapse, sold 80% of its lots last night.
A big 24 hours in Old Masters for Christie’s. First, a strong showing last night in which 80% of the lots from their London sale sold, including strong performances by the Tiepolo (above,) and a Grand Canal veduti by Canaletto, which sold for $5,727,684 against a pre-sale estimate of $4.4 million to $7.47 million.
Painting Found in Attic Fetches $4.2 Million in Old-Master Test [Scott Reyburn, Bloomberg]
Will the momentum continue? Sotheby’s sale tonight will help to clarify the picture.
Second, the auction house announced some of the showcases from its January lineup in New York. This bulletin did not disappoint- the sale will include five moving watercolors by OMNP front runner for “Old Master of the Year,” J.M.W Turner.
A showdown of Turner’s may be in the works, as these works go head to head with Sotheby’s star from its January auction, a Greek allegorical landscape by Turner from the collection of Richard Feigen, as reported by OMNP here.
[...] Christie’s and Sotheby’s Old Master auctions are successes in spite of the art market’s recent struggles [...]