Die Helfer by Neo Rauch sells for $980,378
Posted on Mar 7 - Filed Under Arts | View Comments
The oil painting by Neo Rauch titled “Die Helfer” sold during Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Auction on February 12 for £623,650 ($980,378), over 2 times the pre-auction estimate.
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L’amore del mondo by Giorgio De Chirico sold for $902,500
Posted on Nov 10 - Filed Under Arts | View Comments
On the same note as our previous post and because Christie’s and Sotheby’s like to have similar auctions at the same time, here is a pick from Christie’s recent “Impressionist Modern Sale” auction event on Nov 4 in New York
“L’amore del mondo” by Giorgio De Chirico – sold for $902,500
From the lot description:
“L’amore del mondo of 1960 is a reworking of an earlier painting entitled Le mauvais génie d’un roi of 1914-1915 and now in the collection of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. Depicting almost identical scenes in which the details are executed skillfully and painstakingly, this work differs only from the earlier version in that de Chirico has introduced a mannequin, known as the troubadour, behind the vertical board which divides the composition asymmetrically, thought to be “originally inspired by a play written by de Chirico’s brother in which the main protagonist is a ‘man without voice, without eyes or face’” (On Classic Ground, exh. cat., Tate Gallery, London, 1990, p. 81). The troubadour was an important hallmark and recurring motif in his more carefully gauged and meditated compositions of later years. “Hiding” behind the board, the troubadour; “…is afraid of feeling in his back or his side the piercing arrow of a glance, even a benevolent one” (de Chirico quoted in de Chrico by de Chirico, exh. cat., The New York Cultural Centre, New York, 1972).L’amore del mondo is one of the great paintings in a series of “metaphysical” works where importance is given to the reallocation of reality and where the still life vocabulary is usually fantastic and based on intuition. De Chirico aimed to take commonplace objects and buildings out of their natural environment with the idea of suggesting a counter reality which would communicate with the subconscious mind. “The artist likes what reminds him of certain visions that he has in his mind and in his instincts, and which are his secret world that nobody can take away from him” (de Chirico quoted in op. cit.).
Underlying de Chirico’s philosophy of the metaphysical still-lifes was the writings of Nietzsche. In his complete works he writes: “Art is above all and first of all meant to embellish life, to make us to ourselves endurable… Hence art must conceal or transfigure everything that is ugly… A man who feels with himself a surplus of such powers of embellishment, concealment and transfiguration will finally seek to unburden himself of this surplus in works of art” (F. Nietzsche, Human, “All-Too-Human,” Part Two,” in Dr. O. Levy, ed., The Complete Works of Friedrich Nietzsche, New York, 1911, pp. 91-92).”
Cavaliere by Marino Marini sold for $1,082,500
Posted on Nov 10 - Filed Under Arts | View Comments
Marino Marini’s sculpture titled Cavaliere was sold for $1,082,500 at Sotheby’s Impressions & Modern Art Evening Sale on Nov. 9, 2009 in New York.
From the lot’s note:
“A dominant theme of Marini’s art, the subject of horse and rider underwent a number of stylistic transformations throughout the decades, from the simple, rounded forms of the early 1940s, to the highly stylized, almost abstract manner of his late works. With its solid forms, the pronounced vertical and horizontal lines, and the figure of the rider firmly seated on the horse’s back, .Cavaliere. recalls the calmer, more harmonious renderings of the theme, which culminated in the famous wooden sculpture .The Town’s Guardian Angel. of 1949-50, and its monumental bronze variant dominating Palazzo Venier dei Leoni in Venice. While the horse is represented in a moment of tension, its head and neck raised upwards, the rider still appears unperturbed, unlike the more dramatic, falling figures that dominated Marini’s sculpture of the 1950s.In choosing the subject of horse and rider, Marini draws on a long established tradition of equestrian painting and sculpture, that had its prominent place in more or less every period throughout the history of Western art, from small-scale votive renderings of early civilizations, to the grand, triumphant statues of modern-day rulers and military leaders. While firmly grounding his art in this tradition, in contrast to the often bombastic and politically motivated sculptures created by his predecessors, Marini’s horses and riders are the embodiment of a new, raw, elemental force. Having lost its significance in the sphere of transportation and warfare, the horse in Marini’s vision acquires a more spiritual character and, unified with the image of a nude rider, becomes a symbol of humanity. Carlo Pirovano wrote about Marini’s riders executed around this time: ‘The frenetic progress of Marino’s tragic allegory of modern man, compressed between superior idealities and uncontrollable irrationality, reached the point of greatest psychological tension in the early Fifties.The cause of this was the fundamental uncertainty of the outcome of a conflict that was increasingly linked to the primary nature of the protagonists rather than the perverse development of contingent events”
The Annenberg Diamond – 32-carat square emerald-cut diamond sold for $7,698,500
Posted on Oct 22 - Filed Under Jewelry | View Comments
Just in: The Annenberg Diamond by David Webb was sold for $7,698,500 at Christie’s New York Jewelry auction today.
Two pieces of Tyeb Mehta sell at Christie’s South Asian and Modern Art auction in the million dollar range
Posted on Sep 27 - Filed Under Arts | View Comments
Two paintings of Tyeb Mehta were bought in the million dollar range at Christie’s South Asian Modern and Contemporary Art event in New York on September 16.
Mahishasura – sold for $1,280,900
Two Figures – sold for $926,500
A sad actuality of this event is Tyeb Mehta recent passing on July 2, 2009. You can learn more about him on Wikipedia or through this editorial of the New York Times
Zeng Fanzhi exhibition in New York – Apr 2 to May 15
Posted on May 1 - Filed Under Arts | View Comments
It’s still not late, if you are in the neighborhood, go and see one of our favorite contemporary artists’, Zeng Fanzhi’s exhibition at Acquavella Galleries in New York (18 East 79th Street, New York, 10075)
We have been covering Fanzhi’s million-dollar sales events for a while and for some unexplainable reason (other than that he is really good) we love his work a lot.
If you do visit the exhibition, please send us some photos (needless to say, legal photos only)
Source: ArtObserved
A Diamond Pendant by Harry Winston
Posted on Apr 25 - Filed Under Jewelry | View Comments
It was all about diamonds this time at Christie’s and Sotheby’s jewelry auction events on the 22nd and 23rd of April (respectively).
Christie’s produced a few million-dollar sales including a diamond pendant by Harry Winston that was sold for $986,500 including buyer’s premium. See below:
Sunny Sprawling Ranch in Garden City, NY
Posted on Mar 10 - Filed Under Homes | View Comments
5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms
1 unit, Interior: 3000 sqft, Lot: 0.23 acre(s)
Euston Rd 06, Garden City, NY 11530
Map and directions
Portero.com raises more VC funding for luxury auction website
Posted on Feb 19 - Filed Under Jewelry, Miscellaneous, Technology | View Comments
New York based Portero.com has raised $6.6 million in VC funding. The Series B round was led by LFE Capital. Portero.com provides a luxury marketplace and auction site for authenticated luxury items from hundreds of brands since 2004. Categories include jewelry, watches, accessories and fine housewares. Portero’s emphasize is placed on the value-add provided by their authentication process and the all-inclusive consignment process including: research, pricing, professional photography, description write-up payment, shipping and finalizing the sale of your items. As an example, see below the most expensive jewelry currently listed with active bids:
Oscar Heyman Platinum Emerald-Cut 10.54 ctw Diamond Clip Earrings
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Turtleneck by Andrew Wyeth
Posted on Jan 16 - Filed Under Arts | View Comments
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American realist painter Andrew Wyeth died today at age 91. He was considered to be one of the greatest contemporary painters in the US. In memory of Wyeth, see below his painting titled “Turtleneck”, which sold in 2007 for $1,105,000 |
Turtleneck – Andrew Wyeth – sold at Sotheby’s
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What One Million Buys on Facebook
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