What happened and what's forthcoming

Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale
January 27, 2010
The Barrett-Jackson Auction Company recorded more than $68 million in total sales during the 39th Annual Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction in Scottsdale last week. The total is an 11 percent increase from Scottsdale 2009. Top sellers included a 1929 Hamilton Metalplane H-47 for $671,000 and a 1964 Shelby Cobra that brought $478,500. Hailed as "The World's Greatest Collector Car Auctions™," the 2010 Scottsdale event featured nearly 1,200 collector vehicles all for sale at No Reserve and nearly 40 hours of live, high-definition TV coverage on SPEED.

The weather in Arizona had little impact on the auction, as no cars were damaged and all vehicles crossed the block as scheduled. Despite the inclement weather of significant rain and wind and the associated challenges, more than 180,000 people braved the elements to attend the automotive lifestyle event.


Sotheby's, New York
29 January 2010
Old Masters Week totaled $74,181,071 (£45,992,356, €53,148,582), nearly topping the presale series estimate of $52.5/75.5 million. Included in the offerings were Important Old Master Paintings Including Sculpture, Important European Terracotta and Bronze Sculpture from the Arthur M. Sackler Collection, Old Master Drawings and Old Master & 19th Century European Art. Important Old Master Paintings and Sculpture. The week was led by the spectacular results for Thursday's sale of Important Old Master Paintings and Sculpture, which brought $61,599,250 (£37,911,897) (¤44,000,407), nearly reaching the high estimate of $63 million. Twelve lots sold for more than $1 million, and almost 60% of the works sold brought prices above the high estimate.


Christie's New York
12 February 2010
Christie's New York achieved a combined total of $40,858,500/ £25,191,210 / €29,051,023 in two days of sales, including the two-part auction of Old Master & 19th Century Paintings, Drawings & Watercolors on Wednesday and a special private collection sale, A Cabinet of Curiosities: Selections from the Peter Tillou Collections on Thursday. The top lot of the sales, the entrance to the Turkish Garden Café by Louis Léopold Boilly (1761-1845) was acquired for the J. Paul Getty Museum. In announcing this important acquisition, Museum Director Michael Brand heralded the work as “one of Boilly's greatest paintings, and a brilliant addition to the museum's collection.” It sold for $4,562,500, setting a new world auction record for a work by the artist.

Another auction record was achieved for the newly rediscovered painting Diana and Callisto by the 17th century Italian master Gaetano Gandolfi (1734-1802). The painting sold to a private collector on the phone after a protracted bidding battle drove the price to $4,114,500. The large-scale painting is believed to be one of two paintings originally commissioned in the late 1780's by the Russian prince Nicholay Yusupov (1751-1831). Previously known to scholars only from photos stored in the archives of the Louvre Museum, the painting emerged from a private American collection where it had remained for the last fifty years.

INDIA

Bid and Hammer, Bangaluru
10 March, 2010
"The Mystery Of Chickpet" Architecture & Related Objects Chickpet, and all the other Petes (market) surrounding it, is also famous for the ancient temples, mosque and has historic importance. The history of the place goes back to the 16th century. Kempegowda with the help of four pairs of oxen started ploughing the land into four directions from the point where Chickpet and Doddapete meet each other. These four directions became four important trade market roads. Gradually other parallel roads came up and different petes came into being in accordance with the kind of trade which took place. Checkpet is known for its connection to Adinath, the first Jain Tirthankara, and the 'Mystery of Checkpet' is led by a very fine Pahari School Miniature painting of Lord MAHAVEERA, seated on the throne, flanked by two attendants holding Whiskers with a Tiger seated in the front. The bottom portion of the painting depicts Sri Gowtam Swamiji, along with the Paduka of Sri Dadaji under a Canopy, A Circular Tantric Navpadji with a Tirthankra in the centre followed by a painting of Sri Chakkeshwari Devi seated on a Lotus. This very rare combination and unusually fine quality of Miniature painting is profusely embellished with fine Gold and real Basara Pearls.

Estimate: Rs 10, 00,000  12, 00,000 (US $ 21,739  26,087). The piece is non-exportable. This along with other Jain memorabilia, as well as exquisite specimens of authentic Jain school of Art make up most of the lots for sale.



Saffronart spring online auction

10 - 11March, 2010.

The auction will include works by 47 modern and contemporary Indian artists. The sale features 100 lots, including paintings and sculptures. The highlights of the auction being works by S.H. Raza, Krishen Khanna, F.N. Souza, Manjit Bawa, Ravinder Reddy, Subodh Gupta, M.F. Husain, J. Swaminathan, Ram Kumar.

INTERNATIONAL

Bonhams, Knightsbridge
24 February, 2010

An incredible archive of 'Doctor Who' memorabilia comprising monsters, costumes and props from the BBC series will be sold by Bonhams, Knightsbridge.

As the world's longest running science fiction television programme, 'Doctor Who' has attracted a cult following and this sale was taken as an opportunity by collectors to get their hands on authentic, screen-used props.

David Tennant, the main protagonist of 'Doctor Who' was highly popular with more than 10 million people tuning in to see his last adventure over Christmas. A dinner suit worn by him in three episodes generated a lot of interest. Clothes worn by the Doctor's companions in the New Series were also represented with a complete costume of Astrid Peth's (Kylie Minogue) from the 2007 Christmas special episode, and various garments worn by Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) and Donna Noble (Catherine Tate).

Two Daleks, a sea devil and several Cybermen who featured regularly in the Classic series avoided extermination to make it to the sale room, and different pieces of ceremonial regalia modelled by Time Lords also joined the ranks. Also under the hammer were examples of Kroll squid, Mandrells, Nimons, Foamasis, Tractators, Mogarians and Vervoids and a Brontasaurus spanning the tenure of Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy at the helm of the TARDIS.

Also of significance were two versions of the Malus from 'The Awakening' and the Magma Creature which featured in 'The Caves of Androzani', Peter Davison's last show as the Doctor which aired in March 1984 several times voted the best 'Doctor Who' episode. Other former adversaries of the Doctor included in the catalogue were a Gastropod 'Mestor', Jacondan headdress, LI Tracker Robot, The Kandyman, one of the Gods of Ragnarok and Cheetah People the latter featuring in the last ever story to air in the show's Classic run.

As well as monsters and costumes there was also a selection of vehicles up for auction - including Captain Jack's Torchwood Range Rover and a black cab from The Runaway Bride episode aired in 2006.

Forthcoming at Antiquorum, New York

4 –5 March, 2010
Kennedy Onassis' Watch, Gandhi Pocket Watch and Henry Graves Watch on the Auction Block in Antiquorum's March Sale Antiquorum Auctioneers will hold a special spring watch auction at its US headquarters in New York City. That will include a collection of over 400 important timepieces from across the globe.

Leading the auction will be: 'Kennedy Onassis' Watch: The Nastrix watch that belonged to President John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the US, and later to Aristotle Onassis, the Greek shipping magnate, is expected to draw international attention.  It is a waterproof 14K gold wristwatch with 57 jewels and original brown alligator strap. The watch was given to JFK in January 1963 by two of his greatest supporters Evangeline and David Bruce, at the time, well-known socialites in Washington D.C. Following JFK's assassination, the watch and other personal effects were retrieved from his desk by his secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, at the request of Lyndon B. Johnson. Ms. Lincoln gave the watch to Jacqueline Kennedy. Several years later, on October 20, 1971, Jackie gave the watch as a gift to her second husband, Aristotle Onassis, adding the inscription, FALJ (“For Ari Love Jackie”) inscribed between the lugs. This unique collector's watch and letter of authenticity from Evelyn Lincoln will be offered with a pre-auction estimate of $150,000 - $250,000.

Gandhi Pocket Watch: In addition, Mahatma Gandhi's silver Zenith pocket watch (1910-1915) is expected to attract significant interest. The pocket watch belonged to the Mahatma, who later gave it to his grandniece, Abha Gandhi, his assistant for six years, and in whose arms he died. Also offered as part of the same lot are Gandhi's sandals, glasses, bowl, plate, and letters of authenticity. Estimate: $20,000 - $30,000.

Henry Graves Watch: Another highlight of the March sale is the Platinum Minute Repeater that was made for Henry Graves, Jr. in 1927 and sold on August 16, 1928. This will be the first time that this watch has been offered at auction, having been kept in private collection for over 50 years. From an affluent banking family, Mr. Graves was one of the most ardent Patek Philippe collectors in the world. His tremendous wealth and passion for watches allowed him to commission Patek Philippe to produce some of their finest and most technologically advanced watches, including the “Supercomplication”, which, with 24 complications, made it, at that time, the most complicated watch ever produced. He characteristically had his watches engraved with his family coat of arms and with the epithet, Esse Quam Videri (“To Be Rather than to Seem.”) The 1927 platinum minute repeater is the second-most important Graves wristwatch ever offered at auction, following the Graves tortoise-shaped minute-repeater sold in an Antiquorum sale in 1989. Estimate: $250,000$ 350,000.

Giuseppe Bonanno Watch: A yellow gold Patek Philippe, Ref. 1516, that belonged to the late Giuseppe Bonanno, Sr. (the “Godfather” of the Bonanno crime family) is also included in Antiquorum's upcoming auction. It is a fine, extremely rare and important, 18K yellow gold wristwatch, which is accompanied by a letter of authenticity from his daughter, Catherine Bonanno. Mr. Bonanno was an original member of the “Commission,” founded in 1931, whose purpose was to establish rule by consensus among the crime families. Estimate: $ 5,000-$ 8,000.

Rolex “Paul Newman”: For the Rolex aficionado, there will be a Rolex “Paul Newman” Oyster Cosmograph. Produced in 1973, it is a very fine and rare, water-resistant, stainless steel wristwatch with an exotic dial and black bezel. Estimate: $ 60,000 - $ 90,000

Exceptional Patek Philippe Wristwatches: Another extremely rare and sought after Patek Philippe wristwatch to be featured in the March auction is the Sky Moon Tourbillon, made in 2005 and sold on June 10, 2005. The watch is the most complicated wristwatch ever produced by Patek Philippe and its first double-face wristwatch. Estimate: $1,000,000 - $1,300,000.

The auction will also feature a Patek Philippe, produced in 2007. An extremely rare and important Platinum and diamond chronograph, water resistant, perpetual calendar wristwatch with a 24-hour display and a precision moon phase mechanism.  Complemented with an ingenious rattrapante device, the split- second chronograph is the most complicated model in Patek Philippe's line of stopwatches. Estimate: $250,000 - $300,000. Another important Patek at auction will be a White Gold “TV Watch,” sold in August 26, 2003. It is a fine and very rare, tonneau-shaped, water-resistant, 18K white gold wristwatch with round button chronograph, register, perpetual calendar, leap year and 24-hour indication and moon phases. The watch is accompanied by the original fitted box, certificate and an extra white gold solid case back. Estimate: $130,000  $180,000.

Forthcoming at Bonhams

Works by Alberto and Diego Giacometti Revealed as part of Actor James Mason's Collection at Bonhams

Two lamps produced and designed collaboratively by Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti and his younger brother Diego, and a table designed by Diego Giacometti, which were owned by the late English actor James Mason (1909-1984) since the late 1960s, are being offered at Bonhams, New Bond Street as part of its Post War and Contemporary Art and Design sale on March 10th 2010.

The lamps (lot 11 and 12, both entitled Lampdaire Noued) are believed to have been designed by Alberto between 1935 and 1937, and translated into bronze by Diego. The brothers were commissioned by the French interior designer Jean-Michel Frank to produce a range of decorative objects for his gallery in 1932, having been introduced to Frank by American artist Man Ray three years earlier. They designed around twenty lights in total, and continued to work with Frank until the outbreak of the Second World War. The lamps have attracted a pre-sale estimate of £25,000 - 35,000 each.

Historic Flag which Flew at President Mandela's Inauguration is saved for the Nation by Bonhams Client.

The South African flag which is to be auctioned on 24th March in the UK has been saved for the nation in an agreement negotiated by Bonhams in London. The flag signed by the three South African presidents - Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki and F. W. de Klerk was flown at the historic presidential inauguration on 10th May 1994. The flag flew at a key moment in South Africa's turbulent history, the arrival of the country's first black president after more than three centuries of white rule, a moment of national and international celebration, and some local apprehension at what the future would hold.

A London based South African businessman and philanthropist who wishes to remain anonymous has offered to buy the flag for an undisclosed amount in a sale brokered by Bonhams on the understanding that it would be returned to South Africa and handed over to the South African Government.

Giles Peppiatt, Director of South African Art at Bonhams, said: “This is the happiest possible outcome for the flag. We are delighted to have been able to arrange a deal with this patriotic South African who was determined to see the flag return to where it best belongs.”

Bonhams South African Art Sale on March 24 will feature works from the best selling South African Artists from Sekoto to Pierneef.

Forthcoming at Christie's, New York

10 March
Christie's sale of Impressionist and Modern Art on March 10 presents an exciting opportunity for collectors to purchase superb works by the great masters Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Tamara de Lempicka, and Henry Moore and to explore a wealth of drawings, sculpture and works on paper by lesser-known artists of the Impressionist and Modern periods. Prices begin at $1,200 and range up to $80,000. With over 160 works, the sale is expected to realize in excess of $1.5 million.

Among the highlights of the sale is a selection of works by the Art Deco portrait artist Tamara de Lempicka (1898-1980), whose Portrait de Madame M sold for a record $6.1 million at Christie's Impressionist and Modern Evening Sale last spring. The upcoming sale includes two mid-career paintings from a private French collection - the meticulously composed Nature morte à la plante grasse, from circa 1952 (pictured page one right; estimate: $40,000-60,000), and the exceptional portrait Jeune homme au livre, painted circa 1954 (estimate: $25,000-35,000). Also featured is a work from a private American collection, Un coq, une poule et ses poussins (estimate: $3,000-5,000), and two figure studies in charcoal, Un nu de femme assise sur une chaise (estimate: $2,000-3,000) and Un nu de femme de dos (estimate: $2,000-3,000).


First Open Sale Of Post-war & Contemporary Art, March 11, 2010

This sale is all set to offer a stimulating selection of paintings, prints, photographs and sculptures. The collection offers some of the most desired contemporary artists, including Helen Frankenthaler, Barbara Kruger, YAYOI Kusama, Glenn Ligon, Gabriel Orozco, Cindy Sherman, Wayne Thiebaud, Fred Tomaselli and Andy Warhol among others. The sale will be preceded by a public exhibition at Christie's Rockefeller Center from 6 to 10 March.

Among the highlights is Repetitive Vision an extraordinary work executed in 1963 by Yayoi Kusama, estimated at $1,00,000-150,000.A prime example of Kusama's obsessive fascination with replication along with the appropriation of everyday objects, the work is an accumulation of air mail labels pasted down by hand on paper. Wayne Thiebaud's Valley River (estimate: $200,000-300,000) is a vibrant painting that features the flat, fertile farmland of the Sacramento river as it flows into San Francisco bay. Helen Frankenthaler's Dawn Stroke (estimate: $100000-150000) is among the key abstract expressionist works offered in the sale.

Additional highlights include Two Jackies by Andy Warhol, dated 1964, (estimate $40,000-60,000).16 March, 2010

Mid 20th Century Decorative Art & Design.

Christie's will hold its mid-season sale with 112 lots, offering a wide range of high quality and affordable objects and furniture by well-known makers from the 20th century, featuring Tiffany Studios, Frank Lloyd Wright, Daum, George Nakashima, Harry Bertoia, Sam Maloof and Joe D'Urso.

Leading the furniture offerings is a selection from the Estate of Dorothy and Marshall M Reisman, owners of the Wine Merchants Ltd companies in New York, Ohio and Florida. Among the offerings are exquisite pieces by modern craftsmen such as George Nakashima and Sam Maloof. Nakashima's work combined the tenets of the arts and craft's movement with his deep reverence for nature. The sale features a Special Conoid Persian and Black Walnut Desk, 1972 (estimate: $8000-$12000). Sam Maloof is represented by an oak chair from 1988 (estimated at: $ 5,000-7,000), a melt-coated Brass and Steel Sculpture, 1955 by Harry Bertoria (estimate: $ 15,000-20,000) and a sleek stainless steel and wire glass Coffee Table , designed by Joe D'Urso in 1980 (estimate: $5,000-7,000).

The sale will also include a group of exquisite glassworks by the renowned French art glass factory, Daum, owned by the late Dr Simon Pinhas, an enthusiastic collector of Daum and Emile Galle. Offerings include two Wheel-carved Glass Bottles with Stoppers, 1910 (estimate: $1800-2500), an Alfred Daguet respousse metal box, 1904 (estimate $3000-5000), a pair of Pierre Patout armchairs from SS Normandie (estimate $ 6000-8000) and a stoneware table lamp base by Peter Voulkos (estimate $ 9,000-12,000).

South Asian Modern and Contemporary Art

March 23, 2010
Christie's sales of Modern and Contemporary Indian Art concentrate on the geographic regions of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Encompassing art from the last century, the sales focus primarily on works from the second half of the 20th century, which experienced a renaissance after the partition of India in 1947. Works of Indian modernists, including those by the renowned Bombay Progressives Group are typically featured in Christie's auctions alongside works by a younger increasingly avant garde group of artists from South Asia. As the leading auction house for Modern and Contemporary Indian art, Christie's holds sales across the globe. Among the artists are M.F. Husain, S.h. Raza, Jamini Roy and others.

Forthcoming at Sotheby's, Amsterdam

8 March 2010
The BAT Artventure collection, formerly known as The Peter Stuyvesant Collection.   
163 works from the former Peter Stuyvesant Collection, property of British American Tobacco Netherlands (BAT), will be up for sale on Monday, March 8, 2010 at Sotheby's in Amsterdam. The works are estimated to realise in excess of €4 million. It is the largest Post-War and Contemporary Art collection ever to come at auction in the Netherlands. Starting in the late 1950s it became famous as the Peter Stuyvesant Collection and now consists of more than 1000 works created by artists from over 40 countries. The core body of the collection comprises 3 works by leading artists such as Karel Appel, Arman, Alighiero Boetti, Corneille, Alan Davie, Simon Hantai, Mike Kelley, Martin Kippenberger, Per Kirkeby, Wilfredo Lam, Robert Mangold, Robert S. Matta, Kenneth Noland, Roman Opalka, Niki de St Phalle (Tony, est. €250,000-350,000), Serge Poliakoff, Manuel Rivera, David Salle, Giuseppe Santomaso, Jan Schoonhoven, Jesus Rafael Soto, Gunther Uecker and Victor Vaserely.

All these artworks are completely fresh to the market.

Sotheby's, London

9 March 2010

Musical Instruments.
This auction of Musical Instruments features a fine selection of Italian and French violin and bow making. Two violins made by the Gagliano family of Naples, one by Gennaro in 1770 (est. £60,000-80,000, pictured left), and one by his nephew Giovanni in 1789 (est. £50,000-70,000), lead the sale. The Turin School also features strongly with a fine 1833 viola by Giovanni Pressenda (est. £70,000-100,000), and a violin dated 1925 by Pressenda's follower Annibale Fagnola (est. £35,000-50,000). The two greatest names in French violin making, Nicolas Lupot and J.B. Vuillaume, are represented by violins dated 1798 and 1865 respectively, and many leading French bowmakers also feature, with bows by François Tourte, Jean Persoit and François Lupot. One of the main attractions of the sale will undoubtedly be one of Yehudi Menuhin's favourite bows. The bow, which is attributed to Tourte and estimated at £25,000-35,000, was given to Menuhin in 1929 with the 'Prince Khevenhüller' Stradivari. It was on this violin and bow that he played for the majority of his career.

Sotheby's, Paris

18 March 2010

Collection Violette de Talleyr and Duchess de Sagan, Former Collection Gaston Palewski
Exhibition: 13 - 17 March (excluding 14 March)

Sotheby's Paris will offer the Collection of Violette de Talleyrand, Duchess de Sagan, who was married to the famous collector Gaston Palewski (1901-1984, Chief of State under General de Gaulle from 1942 to 1946). The eclectic collection from his former apartment on the rue Bonaparte includes a portrait of a woman attributed to Lorenzo Pasinelli (est. €15,000-20,000), a portrait of David holding Goliath's head by the circle of Simon Vouet (est. €30,000- 40,000), a painting by Walter Sickert, showing the Palazzo Montecuccoli-Polignac in Venice (est. €40,000-60,000), and a very impressive group of paintings by Georges Michel (estimates from €1,200-1,800 to €15,000-20,000), the French painter of landscapes from the beginning of the 19th century. The furniture is led by a rare French giltwood armchair from the Regency period (est. 80,000-120,000).

Sotheby's, New York

24 March 2010
Indian and South East Asian Art
Sotheby's is to offer the Collection of Emanuel Schlesinger in its sale of Indian and South East Asian Art on Wednesday 24 March 2010 in New York. Schlesinger lived in Bombay from 1939 to his death in 1968 and was a patron and major influence over many of the most important Indian artists of the post-war period. Among the many artists he knew and worked with was Tyeb Mehta whose Untitled, estimated at $100/150,000 is the highlight of the collection. Zara Porter-Hill said: "Emanuel Schlesinger was an important figure in the Bombay art scene in the decades following Indian Independence. By sharing his experiences of inter-war German and Austrian art with Tyeb Mehta, among many others he helped to provide meaning to modern Indian art which at that time was struggling to define itself in the post-Independence and partition landscape."