Natalia Goncharova’s Work Soared in the London Russian Sales; Now She’s Featured in Next Week’s Impressionist and Modern Auctions.

This is Christie’s Goncharova, a featured lot in their London Impressionist and Modern sale on the 24th. Estimated at between 3.5 million pounds and 4.5 million pounds, Les Fleurs is a pivotal work from 1912 when Goncharova was involved with Der Blaue Reiter. So they’re banking on the rage for Expressionist works–especially among Russian buyers. See this story from Art + Auction summing up the now fading Expressionism micro-market.

Christie’s was just got burned on The Crucifixion which was bought in at an estimate of between 1.5 million and 2.5 million pounds during the Russian sales. Meanwhile, Bonham’s scored 1.7 million pounds for Sailboat and Sotheby’s made 2.28 million and 1.16 million pounds on two different still lifes in the same
sales (see one after the jump.) Perhaps more significantly, Sotheby’s had two day sale winners that sold for four and five times the low estimates in the low six-figure range.

This Art + Auction story about the Goncharova market warns of fakes and suggests her works on paper are undervalued. But the big question is whether Les Fleurs can establish a new record and keep her momentum building.

Artist Dossier: Natalia Goncharova (Art + Auction)

The New Blue Chip (Art + Auction)