Zwirner Takes Over the Joan Mitchell Estate: The big question many market followers raised upon the announcement two days ago that the Joan Mitchell Estate would now be represented by David Zwirner is how much material the estate still holds. But that may not be the most important aspect of gallery’s move. As the exclusive representative of the estate, Zwirner will have a commanding position within the Mitchell market as both buyer and seller. There’s a fair number of Mitchell works on offer in the May sales. Look for Zwirner to be a bidder—and a buyer:

• David Zwirner will be the Joan Mitchell Foundation’s exclusive commercial gallery. In this role, David Zwirner will promote the legacy of the artist through curated exhibitions at its New York, London, and Hong Kong gallery spaces; the development of new scholarship on the artist’s work through publications and international exhibitions; and the sale of artworks consigned to the gallery by the Foundation. …

There’s $305m in Picasso Works on the Market in May: Katya Kazakina has done a little math on the upcoming Picasso lots in the May sales. The combined low estimate is $305m with high expectations for some of the lots. With premiums and out-performance, the May total added to March’s $232m in sales should push Picasso, traditionally the market leader, close to his previous record in 2015 of $617m. And there’s still more to come in 2018. …

What’s Frieze Got For LA? The Robb Report did a Q & A with Frieze’s Victoria Siddall. She outlined what’s in story for Frieze in LA next year:

• The inaugural edition of Frieze L.A. will take place February 14 through 17, 2019, and will bring together around 60 of the world’s leading contemporary galleries. So it will be of a more intimate scale than our existing fairs. The new fair will celebrate the diverse and dynamic culture of L.A. and its global contributions to the visual arts. Our executive director is Bettina Korek, a native of the city who has very deep roots in the art world. She founded For Your Arts in L.A. Ali Subotnick, another Angeleno who is adjunct curator at the Hammer Museum, will curate the programming for Frieze L.A. The fair is being designed by architect Kulapat Yantrasast, and it’s going to be held at Paramount Pictures Studio, which is very iconic. It’s the oldest-surviving film studio in L.A., so a very exciting venue for us, as well.