Sotheby’s: A Year of Unprecedented Achievements
Sotheby’s marked 2023 as a standout year with unprecedented achievements across categories and global locations. The spring witnessed remarkable success with 50th anniversary sales in Asia, while the summer saw crowds gather in London for a glimpse of the Freddie Mercury collection. But it was the fall that really made headlines, with over a billion dollars in sales in just over a week in New York.
Total consolidated sales for 2023 reached approximately US $8 billion, on par with the previous year. In particular, more than 70 lots surpassed the US$ 10 million mark among more than 60,000 items sold, setting some of the highest benchmarks in Sotheby’s history.
Christie’s: A Paradoxical Year with Promising Trends
Christie’s experienced a paradoxical year in 2023, with a challenging macro environment and a contraction in the art market impacting auction totals compared to the record sales of the previous year. However, when the outstanding single-owner sale from the Paul Allen collection in 2022 is removed from the comparison, the figures show a more modest decline of 7% in US dollar terms.
Total preliminary sales across the business, including auctions, private sales and other revenue, reached US $6.2 billion in 2023, down 25% on the previous year. Despite these challenges, Christie’s remains optimistic, pointing to strong growth in luxury sales, an increase in private sales, and a strong influx of new and younger clients at auction.
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Notable Artworks Sold at Auction in 2023
One of the most significant sales of the year was Pablo Picasso’s Femme à la montre. Painted in 1932, this Cubist depiction of Marie-Thérèse Walter, Picasso’s lover and muse, became the most expensive work of art sold at auction in 2023. It fetched a staggering US $139.4 million as part of Sotheby’s sale of works from the collection of the late philanthropist Emily Fisher Landau.
Gustav Klimt’s final portrait, Dame mit Fächer, captivated bidders and art enthusiasts alike during the summer auction season in London. The mesmerising work, which depicts an unnamed woman surrounded by flowers and peacocks, became the most expensive artwork ever sold at a European auction house. It fetched US $106.8 million at Sotheby’s London Modern and Contemporary Evening Auction.
Claude Monet’s Le bassin aux nymphéas, a stunning representation of late Impressionism, took centre stage at Christie’s Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale in New York. Painted in 1919, the masterpiece depicts a landscape in which sky and water merge into a single shade of blue, with water lilies providing the only spatial markers. The painting sold for US $74 million, exceeding its pre-sale estimate.
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s El Gran Espectaculo (The Nile) achieved remarkable success at Christie’s 21st Century Evening Sale in May. The triptych, which combines the stories of ancient Egypt and the American South, offers a powerful critique of the exploitation of black people throughout history. Surpassing its estimate, the work’s final price soared to US $67.1 million.
Promising Trends and Future Outlook
Despite the challenges facing the art market in 2023, there were several promising trends that point to a brighter future. Private sales, for example, increased and now account for 20% of total sales. Christie’s also saw strong growth in luxury sales and an influx of new and younger clients at auction, with new buyers accounting for 35% of total clients.
Looking ahead to 2024, both Sotheby’s and Christie’s have exciting plans. Sotheby’s is unveiling its global auction calendar, introducing a revamped sales architecture, and diversifying its auction venues to expand reach and engagement. Christie’s remains confident, with a promising pipeline of consignments already in motion for the coming year.
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