The big spring sales of Sotheby’s will be held this year without an audience and entirely from a distance, the auction house announced on Friday, a first in the history of these sales which brew billions of dollars each year.
New York City has not yet announced a date for lifting the strict containment in force since the end of March to fight the spread of the coronavirus or a timetable for the resumption of economic activity.
Sotheby’s has therefore taken the initiative by organizing its sales of modern and contemporary art without an audience on June 29.
Concretely, the president of Sotheby’s Europe, Oliver Barker, will lead, from London, the sale, broadcast online and live.
At the same time, home specialists will be located in several cities around the world, including New York, and will respond live to calls from buyers.
Collectors will also be able to bid directly online.
«In almost 30 years that I have been in the (art) market this has never happened», Confirmed Amy Cappellazzo, president in charge of fine arts at Sotheby’s, during a video conference, about this method of organization for sales of this magnitude.
«But we are fortunate to be equipped with exceptional technology that allows this, whereas it would have been impossible 5 years ago», She added.
Three sales will be held consecutively on June 29, using the same format.
The dispersion of the collection of Ginny Williams, an American who made her fortune in cable television, will be followed by the sale of contemporary art, the evening ending with that devoted to the Impressionists and modern art.
Among the flagship works of these sales is a triptych by the American painter Francis Bacon, inspired by the Oresty of Aeschylus, estimated at $ 60 million.
Also on offer will be the 1947-YN ° 1 painting by the American painter Clyfford Still, estimated between 25 and 35 million dollars, and the White Brushstroke I canvas by the American artist Roy Lichtenstein, estimated between 20 and 30 million.
Sotheby’s has chosen to maintain its sales at the end of June and not to align itself with its great rival, Christie’s, which will hold its own on July 10, a rare gap.
To justify its decision, Sotheby’s explained that the alignment of dates has so far aimed to allow a significant number of buyers to travel to New York to attend the sales of all the major houses in the same week.
But international travel restrictions are still in effect in many countries, including the United States, which should significantly limit the number of people physically present in July at Christie’s sales, which will open the event to the public.
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