Cracks in the Market in Hong Kong

What to Expect in London + Fontana's $18m End of God + Frida Kahlo

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In This Issue

1. Lot Watch: Music legend Jerry Moss’s art at Christie’s and Fontana’s End of God

2. Correction: Phillips 20th Century and Contemporary Evening sale in Hong Kong = $24.6m

3. Preview Video: A free recap of our analysis of the Frieze auctions and Hong Kong results for Phillips and Sotheby’s that is available to paid subscribers below

4. Looking to London: Amid increasing political and economic strain, more works come to market in London

5. What Happened in Hong Kong: Asia’s sales reveal a market sorting itself out

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Lot Watch

Music Legend Jerry Moss’s Eclectic Collection Comes to Christie’s

Frida Kahlo’s Portrait of Cristina, My Sister (1928) estimated at $8 million

Prominent figures from the music industry are the auction business’s new aristocrats. Just as having an inherited title of European nobility once beguiled bidders in the mid- to late-20th Century, today we see a slew of figures from in front of the microphones—Freddie Mercury, Charlie Watts—dominate the collectible auction market and powerful figures from behind the boards selling important art. From David Geffen to Jimmy Iovine, music industry machers have long been important collectors. In the Spring, we saw Mo Ostin’s art amplify an auction season. Now, Christie’s is announcing the sale of Jerry Moss’s art on November 9th. Partnered with Herb Alpert, Moss created A&M records where he worked with talent like Carole King, Cat Stevens, Peter Frampton, Janet Jackson, Quincy Jones and Sting. The collection is led by an almost grisaille Picasso Nu couché from 1968 estimated at $10 million. Frida Kahlo’s Portrait of Cristina, My Sister from 1928 is estimated at $8 million; Tamara de Lempicka’s Kizette en rose II from 1928-30 carries a $7 million estimate. Among the other works are potential sleepers like Max Beckmann’s Mann mit Vogel from 1950 that is estimated at $2 million and, given the bubbling interest in American art these days, Thomas Hart Benton’s Evening Concert from 1952-63 is offered at $1.5 million. 

Fontana’s $18m La Fine di Dio Offered at Sotheby’s

In response to the rapid advancement of science and technology in the late 1950s and early 1960s, especially the beginnings of the Space Race with the Soviet‘s success in putting a man in orbit around the earth, Lucio Fontana created a series of works—38 in all—proclaiming the end of god. La Fine di Dio are egg-like canvases transformed by Fontana’s signature punctures. Works from this series account for five of the top seven auction prices for Fontana whose market has seen quiet progress at lower price points over last two to three years. Sotheby’s will sell this white example, one of only 5, on November 15th but the work is being put on view in Milan and Paris before the New York sales previews in November. The estimate is $18 million which is below the selling price of all but one of the five that have been auctioned. 

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Correction

Phillips 20th Century and Contemporary Evening sale in Hong Kong = $24.6m

On Friday, we published The Dial for Phillips Evening sale in Hong Kong in error. We calculated withdrawn lots as unsold lots. The four withdrawn lots had a substantial effect on the sale metrics—as you can see in the corrected version. The hammer ratio was still behind the estimates at .93 but the sell-through rate was a robust 96%. 

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Preview Video

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Looking to London

The Market Sleepwalks into London