Picasso Leads MutualArt.com's 2010 Auction Report in Sales

Wireless News
01-20-2011
Picasso Leads MutualArt.com's 2010 Auction Report in Sales
Type: News

Pablo Picasso topped MutualArt.com's 2010 Auction Report with sales of $405,708,629, followed by Andy Warhol, whose total reached $355,732,348.

The Company said the Spanish artist sold 1,269 artworks throughout the year including the world record for any artist at auction - $106.5 million for his Nude, Green Leaves and Bust. A total of 764 works by the American pop artist were sold at auction in 2010, including his second-best result - $63,362,500 for Men in Her Life.
Works by Amadeo Modigliani also fared extremely well in 2010, with a staggering sale average of $9.21 million. With only 17 lots sold, the Italian artist still amassed $156,661,240 in earnings, including a personal record of $68,962,500 for his Nu assis sur un divan.

According to a release, the 2010 auction year has demonstrated that the art market has bounced back following a rocky period in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. By year's end, Christie's reported a record $5 billion in sales, while Sotheby's is expected to announce totals of approximately $4.2 billion, nearly double the 2009 figure.

When it comes to the year's surprises, Dutch artist Pieter Jansz. Saenredam achieved a result after his The North transept and Choir Chapel of the Sint Janskerk, Utrecht, estimated to fetch $31,000- 47,000, sold for $2,330,363 - an incredible 4,820 percent above the high estimate. Another exceptional result belonged to Irving Penn, whose Broken Egg sold for $206,500 - 2,194 percent above the high estimate.

The Company noted that there were also quite a few disappointments in 2010, especially Nympheas by Claude Monet, which was estimated to sell for $45-60 million but failed to find a buyer. Ordination by Nicolas Poussin also went unsold after it was anticipated to shatter the artist's record with a $32 million high estimate.

The full report includes the top 20 best selling artists, top 10 best selling artworks, top 10 most disappointing lots and the top 10 most surprising lots.

MutualArt.com is an online art information service on the Internet.

((Comments on this story may be sent to newsdesk@closeupmedia.com))

Copyright 2011 Close-Up Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
n/a