Yesterday, the first evening of Christie’s May marquee week in New York began with the sale of 38 works from the collection of Barnes & Noble founder Leonard Riggio and his wife Louise. The Riggio collection is the most valuable single-owner collection to hit the auction block in the past year.
The Leonard & Louise Riggio: Collected Works Sale was immediately followed by the 20th-century Evening Sale of 37 lots, which featured two record-setting sales by women Surrealists. The Monday evening double-header at Christie’s New York brought in a total of $488,947,900, selling 99% by lot and 98% by value.
Dorothea Tanning and Remedios Varo Set New Records
Women Surrealists have performed exceptionally well at auction in recent years. Despite overall art market uncertainty, as of last night, this particular trend shows no signs of slowing down. During the 20th-century Evening Sale at Christie’s New York, works by Dorothea Tanning and Remedios Varo consecutively exceeded pre-sale estimates and set new auction records.
Tanning’s 1944 painting Endgame sold for $2.3 million against a $1 million to $1.5 million estimate. The “extraordinary early masterpiece” by the American artist depicts the final moments of a chess match. On the surreal square canvas, almost exactly the dimensions of a traditional chessboard, Tanning symbolically challenges traditional power dynamics.
Revelación (also titled El relojero), a 1955 painting by Remedios Varo, fetched $6.2 million against a $3.5 million to $5.5 million estimate, setting another artist record. Varo, a Spanish-Mexican artist, is remembered for painting symbol-laden scenes informed by Surrealism, philosophy, and the occult.
Monet and Mondrian Also Make Waves at Christie’s
Alongside the major market wins for women Surrealists, Christie’s evening sales achieved another new record with Monet’s Peupliers au bord de l’Epte, crépuscule (1891). The painting catalyzed the evening’s only bidding war, which lasted nearly five minutes. Its hammer price of $37 million ($42.9 million with fees) set a new record for the Impressionist icon’s Peupliers series. Meanwhile, a rare 1922 painting by Piet Mondrian—titled Composition with Large Red Plane, Bluish Gray, Yellow, Black, and Blue—also grabbed attention. While some hoped the characteristic De Stijl canvas would beat the artist’s $51 million auction record, its final sale price was $41 million ($47.6m with fees).
Following last night’s auction results, Christie’s newly appointed global president, Alex Rotter, said, “We unlocked supply and brought good results to our consignors.” Bonnie Brennan, the auction house’s new chief executive, responded to chatter surrounding the ongoing art market slowdown amid wider economic concerns. Brennan described the opening night of Christie’s May marquee week as “a solid result,” but added that “we would have liked to have seen more bidding.”
