All posts tagged: Pollock

Sotheby’s Private Auction of Arne Glimcher’s Jackson Pollock Appears to Fail

Sotheby’s Private Auction of Arne Glimcher’s Jackson Pollock Appears to Fail

Published by Jenni Sidey

For much of Tuesday, June 2,, the second floor of Sotheby’s headquarters at Manhattan’s Breuer Building was off limits. Security guards turned away employees hoping to access the floor, which, when not used as a traditional gallery, is where the auction house stages its biggest and most closely watched auctions—including the $236 million Gustav Klimt painting that last year broke the record for any work of modern art sold at auction. According to sources familiar with the matter, even senior staff were left wondering what exactly was going on upstairs. Related Articles The answer, it turns out, was a Jackson Pollock. According to multiple sources, Sotheby’s had quietly organized a private auction for Number 19, 1951, a monumental Pollock owned by Pace Gallery founder Arne Glimcher. Measuring nearly five feet tall and four feet wide, the muscular oil-and-enamel work is filled with thick ropes of black paint coiling around each other before colliding into bold abstractions. The asking price, I’m told, was $50 million. The sale was conducted with an unusual degree of secrecy. Oliver Barker, …

A Guessing Game: Who Bought the 1 Million Pollock at the .1 Billion Christie’s Auction?

A Guessing Game: Who Bought the $181 Million Pollock at the $1.1 Billion Christie’s Auction?

Published by Sam Flores

Those two sales amount for new auction records, and mind-boggling amounts of capital expended on culture. What’s remarkable is how, in the room, things felt a bit anticlimactic. For the Brâncuși, Christie’s had brought in a secret weapon: Oscar-winning actor Nicole Kidman. In a spectacle orchestrated by Tobias Meyer, Kidman was chosen because she bore a striking resemblance to the model for Brâncuși’s Danaïde, and she danced around the sculpture in its specially designed cupola. But it’s not clear the marketing moved the needle. In the room, it appeared that the winning bid was placed on behalf of the third-party guarantor, following a series of chandelier bids from Adrien Meyer—meaning that the prearranged price offered ended up being the final hammer. (Reports leading up to the sale indicated that the entire Newhouse collection was guaranteed by the same collector. I asked one source, a former Christie’s specialist, if it was the house’s owner, François Pinault. They said that was unlikely.) Sources struggled to initially pinpoint who guaranteed, and then bought, the Brâncuși. When asked on …

Christie’s Double-Header Totals .1 B., With Records for Pollock, Rothko

Christie’s Double-Header Totals $1.1 B., With Records for Pollock, Rothko

Published by José Betancourt

Most of the headlines from Christie’s blockbuster evening sales of the S.I. Newhouse collection and 20th-century art on Monday will likely focus on the 8- and 9-figure prices: the $181.2 million Pollock, the $107.6 million Brâncuși, and the $98.4 million Rothko. Those are mind-blowing sums, to be sure, but those works were always going to do well. The sale actually revealed more about the market below $20 million, which experienced a depth of bidding that has been missing from the highly choreographed and overestimated auctions of recent years. The double-header, which generated $1.1 billion across 64 lots, demonstrated the growing strength of the US art-buying public, especially in the western region, as evidenced by Christie’s representatives bidding on the phones. By comparison, European and Asian representatives barely got into the action, and only at the lower price points. As always, works fresh to the market outperformed those that have been passed around in recent years. Related Articles (All prices include buyer’s premium unless otherwise noted.) The evening kicked off with the 16-lot sale of works …

S.I. Newhouse’s Pollock Sells at Christie’s for Record-Breaking 1 M.

S.I. Newhouse’s Pollock Sells at Christie’s for Record-Breaking $181 M.

Published by Jenni Sidey

A Jackson Pollock painting formerly owned by media magnate S. I. Newhouse, once one of the world’s most formidable art collectors, sold at Christie’s on Monday night for a hammer price of $157 million, breaking the Abstract Expressionist artist’s auction record. With fees, the total was brought to $181.2 million. That number officially makes the Pollock one of the most expensive artworks ever auctioned. The work started with a $82 million bid and recieved over 60 bids, from bidders represented by three specialists as well as two bidders in the room. The winning bid of $157 million, which came after a spirited 10 minute bidding war that saw auctioneer Adrien Meyer counting up the bids in $1 million increments barely above a whisper, went to a buyer represented by Christie’s global president Alex Rotter. Related Articles One of the underbidders, per Julie Brener Davich, reporting in the room for ARTnews, was Swiss mega-dealer Iwan Wirth, perhaps for mega-collector Laurene Powell Jobs. No word, however, on who Rotter was bidding for. Number 7A, a large-scale drip …

Northampton Saints and Henry Pollock land late knockout blow on Saracens

Northampton Saints and Henry Pollock land late knockout blow on Saracens

Published by Sam Flores

Saints, who shifted George Furbank to fly-half in Smith’s absence, were struggling without their talisman, while Tommy Freeman was uncharacteristically quiet. They had Pollock to thank for preventing a third for the hosts, as Hugh Tizard, who reassembled something of a circus act as he juggled the ball over the whitewash, was ambushed by a mop of blonde hair. Saints endured further misfortune when Trevor Davidson, who was on as a replacement, limped off injured, but their heads refused to dip. They mounted a head of steam and JJ Van der Mescht was somehow held up deep in the corner and, even after Farrell’s penalty, they had enough nous to get over the finish line after Litchfield – the man who started the show – broke through to set up McParland at the death, and spark Pollock’s celebrations. Match details Scoring sequence 0-5 Litchfield try, 0-7 Smith con, 0-12 McParland try, 0-14 Smith con, 5-14 Elliot try, 7-14 Farrell con, 12-14 Dan try, 14-14 Farrell con, 17-14 Farrell pen, 17-19 McParland try, 17-21 Hutchinson con. …

Christie’s Nabs 0 M. Newhouse Cache, Led by Pollock, Picasso, and Brancusi

Christie’s Nabs $450 M. Newhouse Cache, Led by Pollock, Picasso, and Brancusi

Published by José Betancourt

Treasures priced at $100 million by 20th-century masters Jackson Pollock and Constantin Brancusi will lead Christie’s New York’s marquee May art sales, coming from the collection of media magnate S. I. Newhouse, Artnet News has revealed. While Christie’s has yet to confirm Artnet’s report, those two estimates, if met, would far exceed those artists’ current auction highs. Numbering as many as 40 works, the collection encompasses examples by giants like Jasper Johns and Pablo Picasso, and is reportedly valued at $450 million.  Related Articles The late Newhouse and his wife Victoria appeared regularly on ARTnews Top 200 collector list, which notes that they are said to have spent as much as $700 million on their art holdings. When Newhouse died in 2017, his family entrusted his collection to the care of art advisor Tobias Meyer, previously principal auctioneer at Sotheby’s, reported the New York Times, adding that the collection included such works as Andy Warhol’s 1964 painting of Marilyn Monroe, Shot Orange Marilyn, and Lucian Freud’s 1993 self-portrait Painter Working, Reflection. Still ahead, noted the …

Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock to Star in Blockbuster Show at the Met

Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock to Star in Blockbuster Show at the Met

Published by Jenni Sidey

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will host a major exhibition for two major artists who have never been subject to such treatment by the institution before: Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock. The famously married artists each established a legacy that stands on its own. This show, to open in October and run through January 2027, will survey those legacies both on their own and side-by-side. In a press release, Met director Max Hollein said, “With its distinctive premise and scope, Krasner and Pollock: Past Continuous exemplifies The Met’s commitment to reexamining modern art through rigorous scholarship and fresh perspectives. By considering each artist on their own terms while also foregrounding their consequential relationship, the exhibition situates Krasner’s and Pollock’s work within a broader cultural and artistic context.” Hollein went on to call the approach integral to the vision he foresees for the Met Department of Modern and Contemporary Art’s forthcoming new wing, scheduled to open in 2030. Related Articles Krasner and Pollock met as young artists when they were included in a …

Thief of Warhol, Pollock Paintings Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison

Thief of Warhol, Pollock Paintings Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison

Published by José Betancourt

Joseph Atsus, a 51-year-old Pennsylvania man, was sentenced on Tuesday to 48 months in prison, a term of supervised release, and $1 million in restitution for several charges related to his participation in a notorious museum theft ring, the Department of Justice announced earlier this week. Atsus was part of a eight-person ring that stole millions in art and memorabilia between 1999 and 2019 from 20 museums, institutions, and stores across six states and Washington, D.C. Among the most valuable pieces stolen were Andy Warhol’s silkscreen work Le Grande Passion (1984) and Jackson Pollock’s oil painting Springs Winter (1949) from the Everhart Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania, in 2005. In addition, the group stole antique firearms, gold nuggets, and nine World Series rings, seven championship and other rings, and two MVP plaques, all belonging to New York Yankees legend Yogi Berra, from the Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center located in Little Falls, New Jersey. Related Articles Atsus is the sixth member of the ring to be sentenced. Co-conspirator Nicholas Dombek, 55, was sentenced last month to 108 months imprisonment, …

Swatch x Guggenheim Releases Watches Inspired by Pollock, Degas, Monet, and Klee

Swatch x Guggenheim Releases Watches Inspired by Pollock, Degas, Monet, and Klee

Published by José Betancourt

Swiss watch company Swatch is the latest brand to partner with a major museum on a product collection. On Thursday, it announced the Swatch x Guggenheim Collection, featuring watches that translate pieces from the collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. The artists featured include Edgar Degas, Paul Klee, Claude Monet and Jackson Pollock. The pieces are the latest in Swatch’s larger Art Journey series, which launched in 2023. As part of the series, the company has partnered with the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the Jean-Michel Basquiat estate, the Rene Magritte estate, and others. Swatch has also partnered with the Guggenheim since the 1990s. Related Articles “This collaboration was inspired by a long-standing shared belief between Swatch and the Guggenheim: art should be accessible, lived with, and experienced beyond museum walls,” Swatch’s CEO Vivian Stauffer told WWD via email. “By making iconic artworks wearable and playful, Swatch removes the distance that can sometimes exist between people and cultural …

Henry Pollock revels in pantomime villain role but Northampton still thrashed by Bordeaux

Henry Pollock revels in pantomime villain role but Northampton still thrashed by Bordeaux

Published by Sam Flores

At half-time, Saints trailed by 17 points and against Jalibert, Penaud, Louis Bielle-Biarrey and company the scoreline could easily have turned pear-shaped. To their credit, the visitors did not fold, even if a couple of the hosts’ tries were soft. Tommy Freeman crossed from close range, as did Pollock, before Fischetti – who had to return late on for Emmanuel Iyogun after his early hooking – bagged the consolation bonus. Northampton, despite their Prem hegemony, were beaten and humbled in the bear-pit; Pollock, however, cannot stop catching the eye. Match details Scoring sequence 5-0 Rayasi try, 5-5 Pollock try, 5-7 Belleau con, 10-7 Rayasi try, 12-7 Page-Relo con, 17-7 Page-Relo try, 19-7 Page-Relo con, 24-7 Woki try, 29-7 Rayasi try, 31-7 Page-Relo con, 36-7 Woki try, 38-7 Page-Relo con, 38-12 Freeman try, 38-14 Belleau con, 43-14 Woki try, 45-14 Page-Relo con, 50-14 Jalibert try, 50-19 Pollock try, 50-21 Belleau con, 50-26 Fischetti try, 50-28 Belleau con. Bordeaux Bègles S Rayasi; D Penaud, N Depoortere, Y Moefana (Janse van Rensburg 58), L Bielle-Biarrey; M Jalibert (Carbery …