Records for Drawings and Paintings by the Great Masters in New York
Sotheby's and Christie's realised over $180 million, with sales often exceeding 80% thanks to Rembrandt and Preti, Michelangelo, Canaletto and Artemisia
Key points
Auction houses devoted the first week of February to Old Masters art, in particular paintings and works on paper by the great masters of the past. Despite the difficulties in finding quality works for this market and the current change in taste that does not favour it, the presence of some works by big names known even to the non-specialist public prompted several multi-million dollar realisations, and several record prices were achieved.
Three lots exceeded the ten million dollar threshold, of which no less than two were due to works on paper, a rather unusual occasion as the market for drawings is usually even more limited due to conservation issues and exhibition problems, as well as the certainty of attributions.
In total, the two major auction houses realised over $180 million, with sales percentages often exceeding 80%, reassuring numbers for operators and collectors.
Rembrandt and Mattia Preti at Sotheby's
Expectations for the magnificent small drawing by Rembrandt depicting a young lion and estimated at $15-20 million have been confirmed, leading to a record price of $17.9 million that will go to a charitable society that cares for the welfare of big cats. The charitable purpose helped to further enhance one of the great master's rare animal drawings, probably composed from life and embellished with vivid and dynamic colouring.
The overall result of the catalogue of drawings offered on 4 February was close to $20 million, thanks in part to a merchant ship study of the Canaletto that sold for $445,000 from an estimate of $200-300,000.
The general catalogue was preceded on the same day by the dispersal of Dee Nixon's well-known collection of drawings, which sold for 95% double the low estimate for a total of $10.8 million. Leading the realisations was a work byMattia Preti, a Calabrian who became Malta's most important artist, which sextupled its high estimate of $200-300,000 to $1,758,000. The large sheet illustrates on both sides figures referring to religious works created in the Cathedral of Malta, confirming its historical importance as well as the great quality of the drawings. The work is a work of art from the Maltese artist's own time
The following day, Sotheby's offered two sequential catalogues of paintings: the first was devoted to the Weindling collection of Flemish and Dutch Provincial works which, thanks to seven results above one million on 12 lots, realised nearly $17 million.
The second general catalogue of several properties added $27.9 million to the proceeds, in the absence of any adjudications above the $10 million threshold due to the withdrawal before the auction of the most important work: a rare panel painted by Antonello da Messina on both sides, with the Ecce Homo' as the main work, estimated at $10-15 million. The reason for the withdrawal was not stated and occurred despite the fact that it was a guaranteed lot.
The main results were therefore due to portraits, including a spirited bearded man by Fragonard that exceeded its guaranteed estimate of $600-800,000 to stop at $2.7 million, and two works with the same realisation at $2.3 million: a figure of a young man with a characteristic red cap by the Florentine Biagio d'Antonio from an estimate of $800k-1.2m, and an unexpected result for another bearded man not attributed with certainty, a mid-16th century panel painting initially estimated at $200-300k: a likely sign of a future attribution to some important hand. Good results also for a male portrait by Tintoretto at $1.2 million from an estimate of $500-700,000.
