Following Up on London’s Impressionist and Modern Sales
Russian bidding is thought to have played its part in both sales [the Monet and Degas], as well as in the record prices paid for three early-20th-century Russian modernist paintings by Natalia Goncharova (£5.5 million), Vladimir Baranoff Rossine (£2.7 million) and Vera Rockline (£2 million) – all artists who have really prospered only since the Russian art buying spree began five years ago.
Russians Help Boost Prices (Telegraph)
there has been a fundamental cultural shift. Interest in contemporary art was largely regarded as a laughable pursuit 30 years ago; now Tate Modern is the most popular tourist destination in London. The super-rich are not immune from this deep social trend. And unlike the rest of us, they can go out and buy art, in quantity.
Monet Avoids the Crunch (The Guardian)
June Sales in London: Looking Good (Artnet.com)
The Master, Judd Tully, describes the penchant for the top works and the buyer of the $80 million Monet:
The high result demonstrated a hunger for top-class works and showed that pre-sale estimates have no bearing on the bullish outcomes in today’s market.
. . .
The anonymous buyer, seated in the front row of the salesroom, seemed a bit mystified by the auction process, with Burge patiently explaining her place in the queue with body language and phrasing as the bids steadily grew at ₤500,000 increments: “It’s against you, Madam.”
