LONDON — “This is what we like: the ping-pong between New York and Hong Kong. We see them on the split screens in perfect clarity,” the auctioneer Oliver Barker said late Monday, sounding like a prime-time TV game show host. He was taking seven-figure bids at a Sotheby’s sale of Impressionist, modern and contemporary art, presented as a “multicamera global livestream.”
The marathon 74-lot auction at Sotheby’s, which replaced the postponed May evening sales in New York, used the latest technology to try breathing life back into the pandemic-numbed top end of the international art market.
The hybrid format featured the suavely suited Mr. Barker taking bids on a rostrum in an empty room in London, facing a bank of screens showing telephone-wielding colleagues in an adjoining room, as well as in New York and Hong Kong.
The auctioneer Oliver Barker took bids from international colleagues on screens in an empty salesroom.Credit…via Sotheby’s
Mr. Barker deftly fielded online and on-screen bidding from across the world for almost five hours, alone in his London control room. Led by a Francis Bacon triptych, five works sold for more than $10 million, and at least eight artist’s records were set.
“Sales are down across the board, but there’s an incredible amount of wealth chasing the rarest of the rarest,” said Wendy Cromwell, an art adviser based in New York. “There’s a real disconnect between who’s hurting and who isn’t. There’s so much pent-up demand.”
And so it proved. Sotheby’s was fortunate to have secured at least three major consignments before the lockdowns imposed to fight the coronavirus pandemic made owners reluctant to sell high-value artworks via digital platforms. As lockdowns eased around the world, collectors and agents could view works by appointment in Hong Kong, London and New York. Several works had been widely published and exhibited, giving bidders further confidence.
“Triptych Inspired by the Oresteia of Aeschylus” (1981) by Francis Bacon sold for $84.6 million, the third-highest price achieved for the artist at auction.Credit…The Estate of Francis Bacon/DACS, London/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Francis Bacon’s imposing 1981 work “Triptych Inspired by the Oresteia of Aeschylus” had been exhibited since 1993 at the Astrup Fearnley Museet, a private museum in Oslo founded by the Norwegian collector Hans Rasmus Astrup. Dealers said the museum had been trying to sell the triptych privately for more than $100 million. But a more approachable valuation of $60 million at the Sotheby’s auction encouraged a telephone bidder to give $84.6 million for the work, the third-highest price achieved for the artist at auction.
The $84.6 million Bacon was underbid online, and the $15.2 million achieved for a masterpiece-quality 1982 Jean-Michel Basquiat drawing of a head was not only a record for a work on paper by the artist, but was also claimed by Sotheby’s to the highest price ever given by an online bidder at auction.
A 1982 Jean-Michel Basquiat drawing of a head sold for $15.2 million.Credit…via Sotheby’s
“This is a departure,” said Guy Jennings, managing director of the Fine Art Group, a London-based advisory firm. “As a result of this sale we may see much more confident online bidding at a higher level than we’ve seen before. There used to be a ceiling of a few hundred thousand on internet bids.”
High-quality Impressionist and modern pieces were fewer and further between, as has been the case for several years, but a private collection of Latin American Surrealist paintings did spark intense competition. The stand out lot was the haunting, highly detailed 1956 “Harmony (Suggestive Self-Portrait)” by Remedios Varo. This set a new high of $6.2 million for the Spanish-Mexican artist, underlining the revaluation of women’s contributions to the Surrealist movement.
“Royal Fireworks” sold for $7.9 million, an auction record for the artist, Helen Frankenthaler.Credit…Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, Inc./Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; via Sotheby’s
Demand for works by long underappreciated female artists was a consistent theme of the evening. A group of 18 works from the estate of the pioneering Denver-based dealer and collector Ginny Williams kick-started the auction, grossing $65.5 million. All of them sold, with a new auction high for Helen Frankenthaler, whose “Royal Fireworks,” a spectacularly vibrant 1975 abstract, sold to a telephone bidder for $7.9 million, more than double the high estimate.
Postwar masterworks by male artists from the estate of the fabled California collectors Harry W. and Mary Margaret Anderson drew more measured bidding. A much-published and extremely rare 1947 Clyfford Still abstract, “PH-144 (1947-Y-No.1),” was the predictable top performer, selling for $28.7 million, well within estimate.
“PH-144 (1947-Y-No.1),” a rare Clyfford Still abstract, sold for $28.7 million.Credit…City and County of Denver, via Clyfford Still Museum/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
“It was a marathon, but bravo. I can see how this could become full blown reality TV with Sotheby’s broadcasting from Honolulu, Moscow, Dubai,” said Mary Hoeveler, a New York-based art adviser who watched the sale online. “Welcome to the pandemic market. It looks like the art market has a good immune system.”
That said, the final total of $363.2 million represented just over half the $692 million Sotheby’s raised from its evening Impressionist & modern and contemporary sales in New York last May.
It looks like the art market may take a while returning to full health.
LONDON (AP) — With a few daubs of a paintbrush, the Brontë sisters have got their dots back.
More than eight decades after it was installed, a memorial to the three 19th-century sibling novelists in London’s Westminster Abbey was amended Thursday to restore the diaereses – the two dots over the e in their surname.
The dots — which indicate that the name is pronounced “brontay” rather than “bront” — were omitted when the stone tablet commemorating Charlotte, Emily and Anne was erected in the abbey’s Poets’ Corner in October 1939, just after the outbreak of World War II.
They were restored after Brontë historian Sharon Wright, editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, raised the issue with Dean of Westminster David Hoyle. The abbey asked its stonemason to tap in the dots and its conservator to paint them.
“There’s no paper record for anyone complaining about this or mentioning this, so I just wanted to put it right, really,” Wright said. “These three Yorkshire women deserve their place here, but they also deserve to have their name spelled correctly.”
It’s believed the writers’ Irish father Patrick changed the spelling of his surname from Brunty or Prunty when he went to university in England.
Raised on the wild Yorkshire moors, all three sisters died before they were 40, leaving enduring novels including Charlotte’s “Jane Eyre,” Emily’s “Wuthering Heights” and Anne’s “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.”
Rebecca Yorke, director of the Brontë Society, welcomed the restoration.
“As the Brontës and their work are loved and respected all over the world, it’s entirely appropriate that their name is spelled correctly on their memorial,” she said.
In a case that has sent shockwaves through the Vancouver Island art community, a local art dealer has been charged with one count of fraud over $5,000. Calvin Lucyshyn, the former operator of the now-closed Winchester Galleries in Oak Bay, faces the charge after police seized hundreds of artworks, valued in the tens of millions of dollars, from various storage sites in the Greater Victoria area.
Alleged Fraud Scheme
Police allege that Lucyshyn had been taking valuable art from members of the public under the guise of appraising or consigning the pieces for sale, only to cut off all communication with the owners. This investigation began in April 2022, when police received a complaint from an individual who had provided four paintings to Lucyshyn, including three works by renowned British Columbia artist Emily Carr, and had not received any updates on their sale.
Further investigation by the Saanich Police Department revealed that this was not an isolated incident. Detectives found other alleged victims who had similar experiences with Winchester Galleries, leading police to execute search warrants at three separate storage locations across Greater Victoria.
Massive Seizure of Artworks
In what has become one of the largest art fraud investigations in recent Canadian history, authorities seized approximately 1,100 pieces of art, including more than 600 pieces from a storage site in Saanich, over 300 in Langford, and more than 100 in Oak Bay. Some of the more valuable pieces, according to police, were estimated to be worth $85,000 each.
Lucyshyn was arrested on April 21, 2022, but was later released from custody. In May 2024, a fraud charge was formally laid against him.
Artwork Returned, but Some Remain Unclaimed
In a statement released on Monday, the Saanich Police Department confirmed that 1,050 of the seized artworks have been returned to their rightful owners. However, several pieces remain unclaimed, and police continue their efforts to track down the owners of these works.
Court Proceedings Ongoing
The criminal charge against Lucyshyn has not yet been tested in court, and he has publicly stated his intention to defend himself against any pending allegations. His next court appearance is scheduled for September 10, 2024.
Impact on the Local Art Community
The news of Lucyshyn’s alleged fraud has deeply affected Vancouver Island’s art community, particularly collectors, galleries, and artists who may have been impacted by the gallery’s operations. With high-value pieces from artists like Emily Carr involved, the case underscores the vulnerabilities that can exist in art transactions.
For many art collectors, the investigation has raised concerns about the potential for fraud in the art world, particularly when it comes to dealing with private galleries and dealers. The seizure of such a vast collection of artworks has also led to questions about the management and oversight of valuable art pieces, as well as the importance of transparency and trust in the industry.
As the case continues to unfold in court, it will likely serve as a cautionary tale for collectors and galleries alike, highlighting the need for due diligence in the sale and appraisal of high-value artworks.
While much of the seized artwork has been returned, the full scale of the alleged fraud is still being unraveled. Lucyshyn’s upcoming court appearances will be closely watched, not only by the legal community but also by the wider art world, as it navigates the fallout from one of Canada’s most significant art fraud cases in recent memory.
Art collectors and individuals who believe they may have been affected by this case are encouraged to contact the Saanich Police Department to inquire about any unclaimed pieces. Additionally, the case serves as a reminder for anyone involved in high-value art transactions to work with reputable dealers and to keep thorough documentation of all transactions.
As with any investment, whether in art or other ventures, it is crucial to be cautious and informed. Art fraud can devastate personal collections and finances, but by taking steps to verify authenticity, provenance, and the reputation of dealers, collectors can help safeguard their valuable pieces.
