20th Century: Christie's global auction between Banksy and Picasso

The persistence of general uncertainty, caused by the Sars Cov 2 pandemic, still prevents organizing events with large audiences, which is why Christie’s has structured a global hybrid auction involving New York, London, and Hong Kong for spring 2021, building on those of last year. The catalog drawn up for the March 23 auction features several masterpieces ranging fromImpressionism to the present day.

It starts in Hong Kong, an Asian hub that is increasingly vibrant with regard to Western contemporary art, where Christie’s is launching a one lot sale, offering Warrior (1982) a monumental work by Jean Michael-Basquiat, made at the height of his artistic expression. The listing ranges between HKD 240,000,000-HKD 320,000,000 (€26,000,000-€35,000,000 approx.) and bidding remains cautious, not going much above the high estimate. The painting goes for HKD 323,600,000,000,just over €35,000,000 in Hong Kong, making it the most expensive Western work ever offered on the Asian market.

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The spotlight shifts to the British capital, where the selection of lots is very substantial, ranging from Pierre-Auguste Renoir to the more contemporary. It is precisely the latter that capture the interest of many bidders . The very young Joy Labinjo with her £30,000 No Wahala (2019) reaches £150,000. Records also for Issy Wood and Claire Tabouret who find a new owner for £250,000 and £622,500 respectively.

Banksy, featured with the iconic Game Changer (2020), is the star of the evening. The work was donated by the mysterious artist to University Hospital Southampton in 2020 as a tribute to the efforts of health staff in fighting the pandemic. The bids sweep away the low estimate, set at £2,500,000, causing the contention to soar to £16,758,000. The sum will benefit the National Health Service (NHS) and other projects aimed at health personnel.

Pablo Picasso’s two top lots, Femme nue couchée au collier (Marie-Thérèse) from 1932 and Femme assise dans un fauteuil noir (Jacqueline) from 1962, while not registering high bids, both were awarded. The former, starting at £9,000,000, settles at £14,582,500, while the latter goes over the high estimate, passing hands for £9,659,000.

Pièges (1946), by French artist Jean Fautrier, animates a heated contest among the bidders. The work, from a low estimate of £1,000,000, is trailed by raises and changes hands for £4,522,500.

Works by contemporary German artists Gherard Richter, Neo Rauch, and Daniel Richter show lively market interest, confirming what had already been seen in the previous year’s auctions.

Encouraging results also for works by Italian artists, including a splendid Portrait du photographe Dilewski (1916) by Amedeo Modigliani that finds a new owner for £4,402,500. Lucio Fontana ’s works Concetto Spaziale and Concetto Spaziale, Attese, created between 1964 and 1966, are both adjudicated; the same happens for Alighiero Boetti ’s Immagiando tutto (1976-1976), which changes hands for £300,000.

Also among the works offered for auction is a fine selection of Surrealist masterpieces, some from the private collection of one of the most important collectors of 20th-century Surrealist art-Claude Hersaint. From his collection comes René Magritte ’s highlightLe moisdesvendanges (1959), which, however, disappoints expectations. The work stops below the low estimate of £10,000,000 and changed hands, including commission, for £10,002,500.

Joan Miró’s monumental work, Peinture (1925), also from the Hersaint collection, like Magritte does not spark and settles at £10,231,500.

Max Ernst with his stunning Cage, forêt et soleil noir (1927) stops just below the high estimate and finds a new owner for £3,082,500.

Based on the results achieved, we can see that the market reacts more cautiously in the face of high estimates, as in the case of historicized artists of the caliber of Pablo Picasso, René Magritte, and Alexander Calder, while it shows more energy toward emerging artists such as Matthew Wong, Amoako Boafo, and Claire Tabouret, a sign of a crisis not yet fully overcome. Regardless, Christie’s puts up a remarkable result with a total of £198,716,619 (€230,312,562), an indicator that manifests how the hybrid auction formula remains successful.

Amedeo Modigliani, Portrait of the Photographer Dilewski (1916)

Pablo Picasso, Femme assise dans un fauteuil (Jacqueline) (1962)

Joan Miró, Peinture (1925)

René Magritte, Le mois des vendanges (1959)

Jean Michel Basquiat, Warrior (1982)

Joy Labinjo, No Wahala (2019)

Banksy, Game Changer (2020)

20th Century: Christie's global auction between Banksy and Picasso

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