In February, Christie’s Hong Kong announced that it will be listing Jean-Michel Basquiat’s 1982 painting, entitled Warrior, up for auction as part of its Global Spring Season of 20th Century sales. The artwork portrays a bold, anatomical subject brandishing a sword and shield with made with forceful lines alongside blue and yellow color blocking in the backdrop. With this mixed-media piece on wood panel, Basquiat wanted to “symbolize the struggles of Black men in a white-dominated world,” as per The New York Times.
Warrior recently sold for $41.9 million USD with fees, becoming the most expensive Western artwork ever sold at auction in Asia. Having an initial pre-sale estimate between $31-$41 million USD, Warrior was offered unconventionally as a single lot and led the live-streamed evening sale which also included several old masterworks including a rediscovered portrait by Vincent van Gogh entitled La Mousmé. The sale is a milestone for the Western art market in Asia and follows the auction house’s continued success from previous auctions especially in London and New York that realized $61,139,818 USD in total value.
“Basquiat is one of the strongest markets coming out of the pandemic,” said Christophe van de Weghe, a dealer who specializes in Basquiats told the Times. “It’s worldwide. You can sell Basquiat, like Picasso, to someone in India or Kazakhstan or Mexico. You can have a 28-year-old spending millions on Basquiat and you can have a guy who is 85. He appeals to all kinds of people, from rappers to hedge-fund guys.”
Get a closer look at Basquiat’s Warrior above and then head to Christie’s website for more information on the sale.
Earlier this week, Banksy‘s Game Changer painting set a new auction world record. The piece, which honors U.K. healthcare workers, also set a new personal record for the artist, selling for $23.1 million USD at Christie’s in London.
Sold to benefit the University Hospital Southampton staff and patients, the artwork sold over four times its high estimate of $4.8 million USD. The auction price nearly doubled Banksy’s previous record, held by the artist’s 2009 oil-on-canvas Devolved Parliament painting. In 2019, Devolved Parliament previously sold for $13.6 million USD at Sotheby’s. The auction house confirmed that all proceeds from the sale will be donated to the hospital, health organizations and charities across the country.
Prior to the auction, Game Changer was on display at the hospital where Banksy donated the piece and included a note stating, “Thanks for all you’re doing. I hope this brightens the place up a bit, even if its only black and white.”
Oftentimes, Banksy is best known for his sardonic approach to his art, but with Game Changer, the artist reveals a heartfelt moment in his piece. Christie’s calls this piece, “the simple, universal values that have come to the fore during the pandemic – family, home and time spent with loved ones.”
Game Changer is not Banksy’s first pandemic-related piece. Three months after donating Game Changer, he left face-masked stenciled rats across the London Underground before it was removed for violating London’s strict graffiti laws. In December 2020, he also left a mural of a woman violently sneezing in Totterdown.
Rare early artwork by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama that have never been exhibited to the public will soon be up for sale.
The pieces, which feature her signature Infinity Nets motif, will be offered in a special single-owner collection sale at Bonhams New York in May called Kusama: The Collection of the late Dr Teruo Hirose. There will be three paintings and eights works on paper available, and the total collection is estimated to be worth up to $14 million USD.
Kusama gifted the art to her lifelong friend and doctor Teruo Hirose, who came to America from Japan within a few years of Kusama. He made a name for himself by providing low-cost or pro bono medical care to Japanese immigrants, including Kusama, who used her artwork as currency to pay for her medical treatments.
According to Bonhams, the paintings reflect the use of color not usually seen in Kusama’s later work.
“These early works are exceptionally rare due to Kusama’s use of the color red — almost all her other works of this period are white. The third painting in the collection, Untitled, is a very early example of Kusama combining vibrant colors and the scale of the work lends an immersive quality, something that foreshadows the artist’s later work such as her Infinity Rooms.”
In other news, a new book about Kusama’s career and her profound mental health journey will be available for purchase on April 22.
No comments:
Post a Comment