It did not take long for the activists of the art market to react to the lethargy imposed on the world. This area, particularly in globalized, enamored of pomp and grandeur, and who lives on a large train is seen first of all imposing, just like the rest of the world's population, a diet sec.
Most of the fairs, if not virtual, more receiving, more exhibition of paintings, more travel across the planet to promote works. As for galleries, large museums, from New York to Zurich, via hong Kong, they were not for nothing. But during this time, spending huge ran. The reaction, the more rapid was orchestrated by Sotheby s.
An eBay luxury
The auction house was bought in June 2019 by businessman Patrick Drahi has put a strategy in place multi-directional on the Net. We speak of a transformation under the influence of the prestigious firm of anglo-saxon culture in a " eBay of luxury ". Christie's (bought by Artemis, also the owner of the Item), a time observer, has followed the same trend.
Thus, by measure of savings, the vast majority of paper catalogs, usually dispatched across the globe, are now deleted. But above all, the two houses expanded their areas of expertise. They compete imagination to multiply the transactions. Number of sales are now standing only on the Net and Sotheby's, for example, a sales per week devoted to watches.
The best of the "private sales"
But the two competitors also offer for people in need of fast money and discretion of transactions muted called the " private sales ". The novelty lies in the fact that you can now find on their websites a wide range of works to give in this way then that, until that time, the total secrecy was preserved. "This is now clearly part of our priorities," says Amy Cappellazzo, the patroness of the section Fine Art at Sotheby s.
In the same spirit, since forever, at Sotheby's and Christie's are officially considered as competing open galleries. But in this period of global crisis is acute, Sotheby's has put up on its site "Sotheby's Gallery Network" which is home to the works proposed by the galleries of influential and key a percentage on each transaction. In September, Christie's associates at the Biennale of Paris (ex-Biennale des antiquaires become annual) to organize from 10 to 21 September 2020 an auction in collaboration with antique dealers participating. "We are all in the same ecosystem. We need to stick together. We're going to motivate fans to visit the galleries to see the works for sale, " says Cécile Verdier, the president of Christie's France.
With the crisis of the sars coronavirus, the online sale has become an obligation to the art market to survive. Thus, the largest contemporary art fair in the world, Art Basel which was held in June, then in September, has been cancelled in favor of a version on the Internet which takes place from 19 to 26 June 2020.
8 million for a Koons
While the most influential collectors of the world, the Americans, are still confined in their villas in the Hamptons or Beverly Hills, the challenge is for the galleries to sell works million as the fair offers this year on its website. A transaction has already been carried out in this framework. A sculpture by Jeff Koons has been officially sold for $ 8 million in the first hours VIP of the operation.
As for the major sales of modern and contemporary art of London and New York, the ones who give the the market for the coming six months, they have been postponed in order dispersed in the months of June and July.
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In London, for example, Christie's offers in the context of a single sale July 10, 2020 a painting of Magritte 1962 called "Arc de Triomphe" estimated at $ 8.1 million. On July 10, in a sale that will be held alternately in New York, London, Paris, and hong Kong, Christie's will assign its lots of modern and contemporary the most prestigious, including a painting of Picasso's 1955 series famous "Women of Algiers" inspired by Delacroix and is estimated at $ 25 million.
Sotheby's is not at rest, which presents, on the 29th of June, in New York, a canvas by Jean-Michel Basquiat estimated at 9 million euros, or a triptych by Francis Bacon estimated at $ 60 million. But the work is certainly the most anticipated of the season, because the more rare, is the last self-portrait in private hands of the immense Rembrandt, sold on July 28, during the auction cross-thematic (this is also new) with an estimate of over 13 million euros.
"art lovers need to consume"
In Paris, the president of Drouot, Alexandre Giquello, observes, against all expectations, that, since the re-opening of the auction room may 28, " the results are exceptionally flourishing. "Art lovers need to consume. There is a long list of excellent prices achieved recently. We have sold two illuminated manuscripts from the Middle Ages to more than 600 000 euros, and the Louvre has preempted a bronze Renaissance French of Ponce Jacquiot for 14 million euros, while a canvas by Jusepe de Ribera has reached 1.8 million euros. "There is nothing to say that the back will show, in a particularly difficult economic context, the price also declined.
However, the very rich collectors will continue to buy for the price out of the ordinary exceptional works. Bloomberg announced recently that the financial billionaire Chicago Ken Griffin has purchased a very large canvas of jean-michel Basquiat (4.2 metres in length) dated 1982 within the framework of private transactions for more than $ 100 million.
