Recently, such a phenomenon as art auctions has been increasingly affecting cultural life around the world. The world's largest media (newspapers, magazines, television, radio, and online publications) are filled with sensational auction news. These messages and numerous comments attract much more public attention than publications about unique exhibitions of masterpieces of art and news from the largest museums in the world.
Auctions (lat.auctio - sale at public auction) is a common way to sell goods on the basis of a competition among buyers. Auctioneers perfectly take into account human psychology and rely on excitement, in which buyers by inertia inflate the price to the delight of auctioneers and sellers.
Everything is sold at auctions (antiques, paintings, land, real estate, stocks, vintage wine, celebrity letters, jewelry, and even children's drawings). At the same time, a variety of problems are effectively solved: from purely commercial to charitable ones.
It is believed that auctions existed already in the 5th century BC. e. in Ancient Babylon (they sold girls in marriage) and in Ancient Rome. With the fall of the Roman Empire, auctions were closed and only reappeared in France in the 13th century. The emergence of the modern type of auctions is historically associated with the Netherlands, where in 1599 the first book auction in Europe was held. The auction sale of books was picked up by England (in 1676), which became the birthplace of the largest auction houses in the world. In developed countries, there are now auction houses in almost every major city. There are several types of auctions, but the main ones are "English" ("ascending") and "Dutch" ("descending").
The English auction is based on setting a minimum price for further bidding, during which the price gradually increases, and the thing goes to the one who set the highest price (this is how, for example, both the largest auction houses Christie's and Sotheby's work).
The Dutch auction starts with a very high price and is conducted with its gradual decrease. The thing or product goes to the one who was the first to "intercept" the lowered price. This form is actively used now, for example, at auctions of tulips or fish, that is, where something needs to be sold quickly.
The larger the auction house, the more versatile its activities (from antiques and fine art to collectible cars and musical instruments). Trades sometimes take place several times a day, including in on-line mode, and begin to resemble stock exchanges, although the turnover is still incomparable.
Antiques, paintings, graphics and sculpture are the core of any major art auction. This is, as a rule, a secondary art market, that is, it sells not new works, but what was created earlier, then bought or inherited.
One of the most determining factors for a successful auction is a preliminary evaluation of the proposed works. In addition to general fashion, the place of the author in the history of art, genre, technique, rarity and preservation of the work, its price is affected by the so-called. provenance of the painting (English provenance - origin, source). This is a kind of "biography" of the work: the author, the date, in which collections it was, at which exhibitions it was exhibited. Provenance is usually given in auction catalogs to confirm the authenticity of the exhibit. An interesting provenance can significantly raise the price bar of the auction.
Each auction offers detailed instructions for sellers and buyers. Usually the auction is accompanied by a pre-auction exhibition, which opens a few days before the auction.
A catalog is prepared for each auction, which can be purchased or viewed on the auction website. The catalogs already contain information about specific lots (individual objects or groups of objects offered for sale as indivisible units), as well as a pre-sale price range, within which a particular lot is expected to be sold.
To participate in the auction, those wishing to make a purchase must register and receive a token. If the client cannot be present during the auction, he can make a purchase by phone or leave a written application in advance, which indicates the maximum price that he is willing to pay for a particular lot.
The lucky buyer should keep in mind that the price in the auction room (eng. "hammer price" - the price after the blow of the hammer) is less than the actual purchase price: it will be necessary to pay commission to the auction, as well as various taxes accepted in the country in which the auction takes place. bargaining.
About the two "whales" of the auction, the oldest English houses "Sotheby's" and "Christie's", today, perhaps, everyone knows. The auction house Sotheby's (eng. Sotheby's) was founded over 260 years ago in London.
The date of his birth is 1744, and the founder is Samuel Baker. He began with the book trade and quickly amassed a solid capital. In 1767, Samuel's nephew, John Sotheby's, started working for the firm. After Baker's death, the firm became known as Sotheby's. Gradually, purchasing lots at its auctions began to be considered a sign of good taste and a guarantee of serious investments. The central halls of Sotheby's are located in London on the elegant New Bond. It is here that spectacular performances worth hundreds of millions of dollars are played out. Sotheby's entry into the international scene was the creation in 1955 of a branch in New York. Then a large network of branches was created around the world (in Paris, Los Angeles, Zurich, Toronto, Melbourne, Munich, Edinburgh, Johannesburg, Housten, Florence, etc.).
In 1990, the turnover of all branches of Sotheby's reached more than 2 billion dollars.
The whole history of Sotheby's is a brilliant evidence that selling works of art is profitable, prestigious and promising.
One of the first fine arts markets was captured by another largest auction house, Christie's, whose history began on December 5, 1766, when its founder, a former naval officer, James Christie, opened the first auction. Soon he already owned premises in London with an auction room specially built for him.
It is believed that it was here that the largest auctions of the 18th and 19th centuries took place. And by the way, none other than James Christie himself acted as an intermediary in the sale of the famous collection of paintings by Sir Robert Walpole, who is considered the first British Prime Minister, to the Russian Empress Catherine II. This deal laid the foundation for the future Hermitage Museum.
The most important achievement of Sotheby's and Christie's firms in the 20th century was the triumphant sales of works by the Impressionists and contemporary artists. For the first time, it was possible to attract the attention of clients to the art of the new time and turn the works of these masters into expensive lots. Trade in works of art has now become a big business with its own specifics and surprises. In recent years, the two auction giants have managed to pull off some stunning sales that have gone down in business history and set the price level for art objects today. The amazing news of the auctions has become the property of the first pages of the press around the world.
Although today the auction houses Sotheby's and Christie's control up to 90% of the world's auction sales of antiques and art objects, but they, of course, do not exhaust the variety of auction houses in the world. There are several other important “players” in this market, such as the oldest auction house in Germany “Kunsthaus Lempertz” (Cologne), the temple of French auctioneers “Hotel Drouot”, the famous Austrian auction house “Dorotheum” and others.
It is safe to say that new sensations at the auction will not take long, and we will once again be witnessing intriguing events in the art world.
Sotheby's is one of the oldest auction houses, which, together with Christie's, holds 90% of the world's antiques and art sales market. Founded in 1744 in London by bookseller Samuel Baker as a closed club for aristocrats.
In its more than 250-year history, Sotheby's has perfected the art of auction by constantly modernizing the process. Modern innovations such as live auctions and online bidding make it possible to participate in auctions from anywhere in the world.
Historical facts testify that auctions (from Latin auctio - sale at public auction) existed as early as the 5th century BC. e. in ancient Babylon and in ancient Rome.
With the fall of the Roman Empire, auctions were closed and reappeared only in the 13th century in France. The emergence of modern auctions is associated with the Netherlands, where in 1599 the first book auction in Europe was held. The history of the Sotheby's auction house begins on March 11, 1744, when Baker's auction house opened. Sotheby's was founded by book dealer Samuel Baker, who held his first auction in 1744 in London and published the first book catalog with fixed prices. In 1754, Baker opened a permanent auction room.
In 1778, the business passed to Baker's nephew John Sotheby, whose heirs headed the firm for more than 80 years. Since that year, the company has become known as Sotheby's. During this period, the company expanded into the sale of prints, coins, medals and other antiques, but the book trade remained its main business.
In the 19th century, Sotheby's established itself as the world's largest auction of book rarities. The richest libraries passed through his auctions, including those belonging to prominent historical figures: the libraries of the Dukes of York and Buckingham, the library of Napoleon, which he took to St. Helena, the collection of books by Charles Maurice de Talleyrand and many others. In 1909 Sotheby's was owned by Member of Parliament Montague Barlow and entrepreneurs Felix Warr and Jeffrey Hobson. During this period, Sotheby's began to trade not only books, but also paintings.
Expansion of priorities
After the First World War, the new management of Sotheby's took up the sale of fine art, paintings by old masters. Gradually, Sotheby's auctions began to turn into large-scale cultural events, which was facilitated not only by the quality level of the lots offered, the elite list of clients, but also by the location of the auctions.
In 1917 the firm moved from Wellington Street to 34/35 New Bond, in the heart of London. This building once housed the workshop of Monsieur Gustave Doré. At the entrance to the new residence of the company, a black basalt figure of the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet (the goddess with the head of a lioness) was installed, which became a kind of emblem of the auction.
In 1936, Peter Wilson took over as director of Sotheby's, with whom the brightest era in the history of the auction is associated. Outstripping his competitors, he was the first to appreciate the prospects of the foreign art market. His achievement was the triumphant sale of works by the Impressionists and contemporary artists. For the first time, it was possible to attract the attention of clients to the art of the new time and turn the works of these masters into expensive lots.
It was then, in the second half of the 1940s, that there was a significant increase in the company's profits, determined by the stability of the post-war economy. From 1946 to the end of the 1950s, sales increased from £1.5 million to £6 million. The company's entry into the international scene was the creation in 1955 of the Sotheby's branch in New York.
An important success and a significant milestone in the history of Sotheby's was the sale in 1958 of the collection of the impressionist Jakob Goldschmidt (a major German banker who emigrated to the United States in the 1930s). For the first time in London, paintings sent by a seller from across the ocean were sold. The seven exhibited paintings were sold out in just 21 minutes. The proceeds amounted to 781 thousand pounds sterling - a record amount for the sale of paintings at that time. Trade in works of art has now become a big business with its own specifics and intriguing surprises, and the news of international auctions came to the front pages of world publications.
Conquering America
Wilson's irrepressible energy contributed to the rapid international development of Sotheby's. He created a large network of branches around the world, expanding to this day. Branches in those years opened in Paris, Los Angeles, Zurich, Toronto, Melbourne, Munich, Edinburgh, Johannesburg, Housten, Florence.
In New York, Sotheby's acquired in 1964 the largest American antique firm, Park-Burnet, and after a successful merger of the companies, they managed to make several stunning sales here that entered the history of the antique business and determined a new level of prices for painting. The development of business in the United States was associated not only with global ambitions, but also with the fact that taxes on the sale of old paintings in this country are much lower than in England.
However, in the early 80s. Sotheby's almost went bankrupt and was itself the target of a takeover by the Brooklyn carpet manufacturers, and in 1983 the American Alfred Taubman, owner of the international network of Taubman Centers super malls, bought out a controlling stake. Under his leadership, in the 80s, the turnover of the company began to grow, and trading regularly showed a positive price trend.
In 1985-1986 over 80 works of art were sold for more than one million dollars. None of the auction firms in the world had similar results. In 1987, Sotheby's profit growth was 85% of the previous year, sales for the first time exceeded a billion dollars. Sensations in 1990 were the sale of Greta Garbo's collection ($20.9 million), John Constable's landscape The Weir (£10.78 million) and the 13th-century manuscript The Duke of Northumberland's Bestiary (£2.97 million) . Sotheby's sales in 1990 were already $2.4 billion.
The economic crisis due to the Gulf War has significantly affected global business, including the auction. Since the end of 1991, Sotheby's annual turnover began to decline. The level of prices for contemporary art and the work of the Impressionists was especially shaken. However, since 1993 the market has stabilized. In 2000, Taubman resigned as head of Sotheby's, and was replaced by William Ruprecht, who previously held the position of director of the American branch. Today he is the president and CEO of Sotheby's.
Sotheby's is headquartered in New York and London. At the beginning of 2000 both of them expanded their areas. In addition to the house on New Bond Street, there was an office in Kingston, a historic suburb of London. The main American office on York Avenue has undergone renovation and has grown by six floors. A lavish gallery was built at a cost of $130 million and was praised by the press as one of New York's most significant exhibition halls.
Russian trace
A bright milestone in the history of Sotheby's was the creation of the Russian branch. Commercial interest in Russian art on the Western market intensified by the mid-1970s. In 1974, Sotheby's decided to hold the first auction of Russian art by the Diaghilev circle in New York, regular auctions have been since 1984.
The peak of commercial interest in Russian art was 1989. Its results were stunning. Things left, compared with the starting price, by a huge margin. The consequence of these auctions was a real boom in the Russian avant-garde. At the same time, prices for paintings by Russian realists of the 19th century and painters of the World of Art also increased sensationally, tenfold.
The heyday of these auctions is associated with the names of brilliant connoisseurs of Russian art and Sotheby's experts - John Stewart and Ivan Samarin, as well as a specialist in the Eastern European market Peter Batkin. It was they who determined until 1996 the level and quality of Russian auctions. By the way, Sotheby's became the first international auction house to sell a collection dedicated to Ukrainian art of the 20th century. Most notable was a collection of 86 paintings created by a group of artists from the Society of Independent Artists, or Parisians of Odessa, as they are sometimes called.
The collection was assembled by Yakov Peremen, a central figure in the world of Odessa art at the turn of the 20th century. At an auction in New York in 2010, the collection was sold for nearly $2 million and is currently on a world tour. Trade in old Russian art is considered a promising direction, but so far it does not go beyond 1% of the total turnover of the company.
Canons of Sotheby's
Sotheby's operates according to the English type of bidding. The English auction (or ascending) is based on setting a minimum price for further bidding, during which the price gradually increases, and the item goes to the highest bidder.
The second type of auctions - Dutch or descending - starts with a very high price and is conducted with its gradual decrease. The thing or product goes to the one who was the first to "intercept" the lowered price. With the BidNow service, customers can follow all Sotheby's auctions and bid in real time on the Internet from anywhere in the world. All Sotheby's auctions are free and open to everyone, and it is not necessary to participate in the auction - you can just be a spectator.
Most auctions are held during the daytime, some in the evening and a ticket is required to attend. A week before the start of the auction, the lots are exhibited in the halls of the auction house. They can also be seen in the catalog, which appears about a month before the event. One of the determining factors for the success of the auction is a preliminary assessment of the proposed work. In addition to fashion, the place of the author in the history of art, genre, technique, rarity and preservation of the work, its price is influenced by the so-called provenance of the painting (from the English provenance - origin, source).
This is a kind of "biography" of the work: the author, the date, in which collections it was, at which exhibitions it was exhibited. An interesting provenance can significantly raise the price bar of the auction. To participate in the auction, those wishing to make a purchase must register and receive a token. If the client cannot be present during the auction, he makes a purchase by phone or leaves a written application in advance, which indicates the maximum price that he is willing to pay for a particular lot.
The lucky buyer should keep in mind that the price in the auction room (eng. hammer price - the price after the hammer strike) is less than the actual cost of the purchase: it will be necessary to pay the auction commission, as well as various taxes accepted in the country in which the auction takes place. For a long time, Sotheby's commissions were charged only from the seller, but now the buyer also pays for the auction services. They make up 12-25%, depending on the auction price of the lot - the higher it is, the lower the percentage.
Sotheby's records
Since 1988, Sotheby's auctions have opened access to the results of their auctions. The fact that their work has become public domain has not only increased the credibility of collectors around the world, but also made every auction a grand event, where the most famous personalities from all over the world are invited.
This made it possible to influence market conditions and dictate trends in the art world. After all, nothing testifies to the value of the work, as the amount that was paid for it. Thus, the most expensive painting was the work of Pablo Picasso "Boy with a Blue Pipe" (1905) $ 104.2 million, sold in 2004. The most expensive sculpture was "The Walking Man" by Alberto Giacometti (1961), sold in 2010 for $103.7 million. And the most expensive gem was the 24.78-carat Pink Earl pink diamond, sold in 2010 for $46.2 million.
In addition to price records, there is a huge number of unusual and exclusive lots sold. For example, the Vostok 3KA-2 space capsule sold for $2.8 million. This auction took place in April 2011, on the day of the 50th anniversary of the first manned flight into space. The Vostok capsule is now on display at the Russian Museum.
Another example is a sheet of paper with John Lennon's handwritten lyrics to the song "A Day in the Life", sold in 2010 for $1.2 million. book rarities. The most expensive book was sold for $12.4 million in 1983. This is the Gospel of Heinrich the Lion, a 12th-century monarch from the Welf dynasty, Duke of Saxony and Bavaria.
Sotheby's XXI century
Currently, the auction house has a wide network of branches (90 branches in 40 countries around the world) and every year organizes 250 auctions in more than 70 areas (works of fine and decorative art, books, manuscripts, prints, ceramics, jewelry, furniture, musical instruments, photographs, watches, wine, etc.).
Sotheby's holds auctions in ten halls: in London, New York, Paris, Milan, Geneva, Amsterdam, Zurich, Toronto, Hong Kong and Doha (Qatar). More than 250,000 lots are put up for auction every year. Sotheby's not only conducts auctions, but also makes private deals with antiques collectors and museums.
In addition, Sotheby's is engaged in property valuation (the results of which are recognized by tax authorities and insurance companies in the client's country), the sale of luxury real estate around the world, and also supports the activities of the Art Institute. The Sotheby's Institute of Art teaches students in Europe, the USA and Hong Kong. It trains future art historians, exhibition curators, art dealers - specialists in the fine and decorative arts of the West and East. The Institute also conducts advanced training courses for established professionals.
The Moscow Center GARAGE has completed the exhibition Stakes on Glasnost. Auction "Sotheby's" in Moscow, 1988 "
The only real overseas auction "Russian avant-garde and contemporary Soviet art", held in Russia, is interesting today both as a commercial and as a social experiment. How was art valued 30 years ago and today? Who was taken to the future? How has time adjusted ranks and prices?
"Sotheby's" in 1988 was not only a bold commercial, but first of all an extremely complex diplomatic event. Have you seen the case: the notorious "pooping Englishwoman" suddenly invites and brings her misters-twisters to buy the art of yesterday's hostile "Upper Volta with rockets." Perestroika, glasnost, the heady air of freedom, the suddenly announced atmosphere of trust… and even the opportunity to legally buy and export the first Russian avant-garde. As for the export, a special order from the authorities was even received - the issue was resolved at the highest level.
The auction generated a lot of anticipation. From the outside, he seemed like a magical entrance ticket to the global art market and generally handed out a lot of advances. The preface to the auction catalog, signed by Sotheby's Chairman The Honorable Count Gauri, reads: “Sotheby's is proud to host the first international art auction in the Soviet Union. We are confident that it will not be the last, as there is nothing better for the development of cultural ties than the free exchange of ideas and works of art between young artists, collectors and students of fine arts from all over the world.”
They are sure... "Dreams, my lord, I have seen dreams, they are pure as tears." 30 years have passed, but not a single foreign auction has come to Russia.
And it won't come in the foreseeable future.
For three decades, that first and so far the last Moscow Sotheby's managed to acquire many legends. About beautiful and not so beautiful things. “Not very much” - since a fuss, very Soviet in spirit, began right away, people spoiled by the housing issue: who to take to the auction, and who not to take, who are their own, and who are out of touch. Artists were urgently given food shortages so that they would not be ashamed in front of foreigners. With money (according to the contract, the artists were promised money: currency and rubles at the exchange rate), too, they say, not everything turned out beautifully. How is it known? Witnesses of those events themselves told me about something. You can read about something in the books of the artist Grisha Bruskin, a participant in those auctions. By the way, I can safely recommend his “Past Imperfect Tense” or any other book: it is written with talent and aptly, it is read in one breath. In general, it was or was not, but it is quite believable in this fuss: everything is very much in the spirit of late Soviet times.
But legends are legends, and the real texture can still be reconstructed with a high degree of reliability according to the auction catalog, protocols and other documents shown at the exhibition. So here's what happened then:
1. 34 artists were included in the Sotheby's auction catalog on July 7, 1988: Grisha Bruskin, Sergey Volkov, Alexander Drevin, Evgeny Dybsky, Yuri Dyshlenko, Ilya Glazunov, Vadim Zakharov, Ilya Kabakov, Svetlana Kopystyanskaya, Igor Kopystyansky, Dmitry Krasnopevtsev, Bella Levikova, Malle Leis, Tatyana Nazarenko, Irina Nakhova, Vladimir Nemukhin, Natalya Nesterova, Arkady Petrov, Dmitry Plavinsky, Leonid Purygin, Alexander Rodchenko, Alexander Sitnikov, Anatoly Slepyshev, Varvara Stepanova, Ilya Tabenkin, Lev Tabenkin, Natalia Udaltsova, Nikolai Filatov , Ivan Chuikov, Eduard Steinberg, Sergey Shutov, Gia Edzgveradze, Maria Ender, Vladimir Yankilevsky. Of the 34 artists, four names are not well known today, and all the rest are regularly sold at world and Russian auctions. So in this matter - bravo, Sotheby's!
2. A total of 120 lots were put up. Of these, 8 works (most of all) were exhibited by the artist Vadim Zakharov, followed by Alexander Rodchenko (7 works), Grisha Bruskin, Svetlana and Igor Kopystyansky (6 each). In general, most of the authors in the catalog included 2-4 works. It is easier to list those who had only one painting or drawing each: Maria Ender, Tatyana Nazarenko, Dmitry Plavinsky and Vladimir Yankilevsky.
3. For some reason, the especially valuable Russian avant-garde was "on the opening act": it was sold in the first string, from 1 to 18 lots. The Russian avant-garde section featured works by Nadezhda Udaltsova, Alexander Drevin, Alexander Rodchenko, Varvara Stepanova and Maria Ender.
4. The most expensive piece at the auction was the 1922 abstract canvas “Line” by Alexander Rodchenko: £330,000 was paid for it, that is, $564,300.
5. The most accessible work at those auctions cost £2,200, or $3,762. Several works went for this same amount at once: three one and a half meter canvases by Yuri Dyshlenko, a large painting by Bella Levikova and two canvases by Ilya Tabenkin.
6. Only foreigners could buy, for currency. Soviet artists and heirs of the avant-garde artists were entitled to 60% of the sales amount (the rest - to the organizers), of which 10% in foreign currency, and the rest in rubles at the exchange rate.
7. Elton John bought lots 51 and 56 - paintings by Svetlana and Igor Kopystyansky. Each for £44,000 ($75,240). Lot 57 (Kopystyansky) was bought by David Bowie for £24,200 ($41,382). Also in the protocol it is written by hand that the head of Sotheby's, Alfred Taubman, bought Ilya Kabakov's painting "Answers from the Experimental Group" for £22,000 ($37,620).
8. Total sales, according to the protocol, amounted to £2,085,000 (including 10% commission). The share of care by lots, according to my calculations, was 94%. In other sources, the figure is 98%. But, according to the protocol, out of 120 lots (the last lot had the number 119, but there were 4 and 4A), 7 remained unsold.
9. The Russian avant-garde was officially and publicly sold to foreigners with an export permit. The works of Russian avant-garde artists came to auction not from museum funds, but from private collections of families and heirs.
10. In fact, with the first blow of the hammer of Simon de Puri in the field of art in the USSR, a market came. After that, for several years, many members of the Moscow Sotheby's moved to the West. Some are forever. The Moscow auction "Sotheby's" was the last major event in 1988, which actually ends the chronology of underground and unofficial art in the famous reference book "Other Art". And it’s hard to disagree with this: what is openly sold in Sovincentre can no longer be called underground.
Recall individual paintings and drawings from those historic auctions.
A comment: The work of Rodchenko “Clown. The Circus Scene is one of the few that could be seen live at the Garage exhibition. It was provided by Moscow collectors Marina and Boris Molchanov. It is known about her that on April 26, 2006, she was resold to the current owner at Sotheby's in New York for $ 528,000, that is, 10 times more expensive than it was bought 18 years earlier in the USSR. "The Clown" is interesting, in particular, because it is one of the first paintings (and perhaps the first) that Rodchenko made in 1935 after a long period of rejection of painting. Before that, he did not take up brushes for 14 years, believing that not painting, but only photography, corresponded to the tasks of the time. At the moment, the price target for this class of work is already about $ 1,200,000.
A comment: Avant-garde ornaments, patterns and concepts of Varvara Stepanova have been especially in demand by Russian designers in recent years. Her style - recognizable rhombuses - was adopted when designing the metro, when developing the style of the uniform of the Russian Olympic team for the games in Rio in 2016, and even when creating the entire corporate identity for the celebration of the 870th anniversary of Moscow. For gouache sold at Sotheby's in 1988, one can name not only today's price target, but also a recent auction price: this pattern for fabric at the end of 2016. Today, this gouache would cost more than $55,000-60,000. About 7 times more than 30 years ago. It's a little expensive - "in its purest form", without all this history, such gouaches are cheaper. But due to provenance - according to this pattern, Sotheby's specially ordered the fabric and from it - scarves for the guests of that historic auction - such a price is quite justified.
A comment: Rodchenko's Constructivist Line, which the New York Times reported was bought by London dealer David Juda, was the most expensive painting in the auction at $564,300 in terms of pounds. Today, a product of this class would cost 5-6 times more on the world auction market - about $ 3,000,000, or maybe more. The current auction record for Rodchenko is $4,500,000, the amount paid for another of his constructivist compositions in 2016.
The first Russian avant-garde was sold out on that July day in 1988. Nothing surprising. Usually the prices were 1.5-2 times higher than the estimate. Since then, a number of things have already been resold to new owners more than once. And judging by the resale prices, the typical return on investment made 30 years ago was 17-20% per annum. This is at a simple percentage, excluding inflation, but still not bad.
Contemporary art and the "second Russian avant-garde" (the sixties) also sold with a bang. But here, unlike the situation of Rodchenko, Stepanova or Ender, buyers needed much more knowledge and visionary. There was no guarantee that all the artists in the catalog would occupy high places in the history of art. And so it happened. According to the situation in 2018, it is obvious that some works were greatly overpaid, while some, on the contrary, were bought for little money. However, all the same, buying at a first-class auction gives collectors an order of magnitude more peace of mind than emotional purchases from the market at your own peril and risk, do not understand at what prices. Despite external pressure, in general, the organizers of the auction - the compilers of the catalog - carried out a qualitative selection, greatly reducing the risks of buyers. Yes, there are far fewer works that have risen in price by 5-6 times over a period of 30 years (with the pace of the Russian avant-garde). And despite some successful examples, the rule of thumb about the higher risks of investing in contemporary art than in the one that has already passed the test of time, in general, works.
A comment: A gigantic three-meter work, composed of 32 canvases, became the most expensive lot of that auction in the string of contemporary art. Grisha Bruskin's "Fundamental Lexicon" was practically a success: his photo graced the cover of the auction catalogue. But almost 17-fold increase in price relative to the $24,000 estimate could not be predicted by anyone. The work is very spectacular and conceptual - about our whole life. It could be seen at an exhibition in Moscow. Estimating its auction value today is a difficult task. In 2000, at Christie's, a four-meter canvas of Logia I, comparable in class, was sold for $424,000. This is an auction record, but a lot of water has flowed under the bridge in 18 years. I think that today the "Fundamental Lexicon" would cost at least twice as much - due to its artistic quality, as well as provenance and its memorial significance. In total, 30 years ago, Sotheby's sold 6 paintings by Bruskin (all that were put up for auction). For one of the things - lot 21 - you can make a more accurate price reference: at that time it was sold for $26,334, and in 2017, a work of a comparable class from the same series went to Sotheby's for $150,000. An increase of 5, 7 times in 30 years. Soon after the Moscow Sotheby's, the artist Grisha Bruskin left for America. After some time, he was signed by the influential Marlborough Gallery, which at that time was number one in Francis Bacon and other first names.
A comment: In the memories of those events every now and then it sounds: “imposed”, “lowered from above” and the like. The younger generation of artists strongly disliked Ilya Sergeevich. His works really look exotic among the works of yesterday's unofficial or semi-official artists. But the paintings put up for auction were good, at least three of the four. The most expensive of them was a one and a half meter canvas "Ivan the Terrible" in 1974, published in one of the monographs about Glazunov. This is a hard naturalistic historical narrative, not at all for the home. But at the same time, this is an absolute Glazunov, in his strongest time, the most valuable period. His current auction record, close to $100,000, today belongs to another work of the same class - "Russian Icarus" in 1973. But we must understand that this is a record, an exception. And usually Glazunov's oils today are sold in the range of $ 10,000-25,000. Of course, given the auction history and size, "Ivan the Terrible" would cost more than an ordinary thing. But not 10 times. Rather, the same $ 50,000-60,000 - maybe a little more expensive.
A comment: The paintings of the most expensive living Russian artist at the historical Sotheby's went above the estimate, but without the hype. For example, the most revealing and valuable “Answers of the Experimental Group” were sold at about twice the estimate, but still for a relatively modest $37,500. But time has passed, and today Kabakov is considered one of the main, even simply the main Russian artist post-war informal art. Monographs have been written by Western art historians, films have been made, and the artist is represented in leading museums around the world. Surprisingly, among the auction top 5, Kabakov has almost all the works done on a figurative basis, including Vyacheslav Kantor's "Beetle" for $5.8 million. Collectors do not accept tables and texts in their collections. The closest reference sale for "Answers of the Experimental Group" took place at Phillips two years ago: a three-meter table concept "Sobakin" was sold for $660,000. Expensive. But "Answers" is better and more significant than "Sobakin" in all respects. So the auction price for them today can be, rather, from $ 1,000,000 - 26 times more than 30 years ago. If so, then this thing Kabakov has become one of the most profitable purchases of those auctions.
Acquiring something at the auction of the famous auction company Sotheby's (Sotheby "s) is considered both a sign of special respectability and a guarantee of serious investment. Sotheby's annual turnover exceeds a billion dollars, among its clients are the entire world elite.
Today, trading in works of art is profitable, prestigious, promising, and the entire brilliant history of Sotheby's is a lesson in how to do business the right way. There are no restrictions on the export of artistic masterpieces from the UK, unlike other countries. Therefore, unique works of art easily pass into national and private collections in Europe and America. Spectacular performances worth millions of dollars are played either in London on the elegant New Bond, or in New York on respectable York Avenue. Together with the auction house Christie's, it occupies 90% of the world market for auction sales of antiques and art objects.
Story
It all started in London over 200 years ago. The date of birth of the famous house is considered to be 1744, and the founder is Samuel Baker. He started out in the book trade. Then the acquisition of books was in great fashion among collectors and wealthy people. Entire libraries were willingly bought, often after the death of its owner. At these auctions, Baker amassed capital fairly quickly. In 1767, George Lee, a man with a reputation as a brilliant auctioneer, became Baker's partner. Then Samuel's nephew, John Sotheby's, started working for the firm. After Baker's death in 1778, the inheritance was divided between these partners, and the firm became known as Sotheby's. To this 
in time, she had already taken up the trade in engravings, coins and other antiques.
In 1917, the firm moved from Wellington Street to 34/35 New Bond, in the heart of London, where it remains to this day. At the entrance to the new residence of the company, a black basalt figure of the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet was installed, now it is the symbol of Sotheby's. To this day, these buildings house magnificent auction rooms for large and small sales of art and curios.
The brightest page in the history of the famous house is associated with the name of director Peter Wilson. He was helped to get ahead of powerful competitors (including CHRISTIE "S) by his enormous energy and commercial flair: he was the first to appreciate the prospects of the foreign art market. Another of his achievements was the triumphant sales of works by the Impressionists and contemporary artists. For the first time, he succeeded in their paintings in expensive lots The next step on the road to triumph: the creation in 1955 of a branch in New York.Then branches were opened in Paris, Los Angeles, Zurich, Toronto, Melbourne, Munich, Edinburgh, Johannesburg, Housten, Florence.
Most Successful Sales
In 1980, in New York, the auction price of a famous painting by the English artist Turner surpassed all previous ones and went for 6.4 million dollars. In 1985, Van Gogh's Landscape with the Rising Sun earned $9.9 million. In Zurich in 1969, the first European jewelry auction of the Swiss branch of Sotheby's was held, and in 1976, for the first time, $ 1,090,000 was received for a single gem - the famous Pink Diamond. One of the latest jewelry "hits" in Geneva was the products of the Russian firm Faberge. The amazing Apple Blossom egg sold for 1,433,500 Swiss francs at Sotheby's in 1996.
Among the "nails" of the 1990 season are the collection of Greta Garbo - 20,900,000 dollars, Constable's landscape "Dam" - 10,780,000 pounds, the manuscript Bestiary of the Duke of Northumberland (encyclopedia of the animal world of the XIII century) - 2,970,000 pounds.
Russian branch
The creation of the Russian branch was another significant milestone in the development of the famous house. Today Sotheby's occupies a leading position in the global market. This means - regular, twice a year (June, December, this year the December auctions are postponed to October) auctions in London and periodic in other branches, as well as the number of lots that is significantly ahead of competing firms. Trade in old Russian art is considered a promising direction, but so far it does not go beyond 1% of the total turnover of the company.
Commercial interest in Russian art on the Western market appeared by the mid-70s, but regular auctions, recognizing both the artistic and commercial value of the works of Russian painters, began in 1984. In 1988, Sotheby's held its first auction in Moscow, which is still considered sensational because it showed record prices for contemporary art as well. However, the peak of commercial interest was 1989. Things left, compared with the starting price, by a huge margin. The consequence of these auctions was a real boom in the Russian avant-garde. An example of this is half a million pounds sterling - for the work of L. Popova or $ 800,000 - for the landscape of A. Exter. At the same time, prices for paintings by Russian realists of the 19th century and painters of the World of Art also increased sensationally, tenfold.
Now the number of buyers from Russia has grown significantly: individuals, commercial galleries, banks have entered the game, which mainly buy 19th-century paintings. Among the high-profile sales of the last period (1995), one can name the “Portrait of Aurora Demidova” by K. Bryullov, for which the Tretyakov Gallery also tried to fight. An effective performance 
ended in favor of Galina Vishnevskaya. With a starting price of £60,000, the masterpiece went to a well-known Russian art collector for $189,500.
Present day
Now the auction house annually sells around 250,000 works of art around the world. The company does not leave the traditional second-hand bookshop direction, it sells jewelry. In addition, Sotheby's sells land and real estate. The turnover of the auction house is 135 million pounds annually.
By the way, Galina Vishnevskaya became a participant in one of the latest scandals that erupted at Sotheby's. The collection of "Rostropovich-Vishnevskaya": works of art of the 18th-20th centuries, dishes, porcelain, silver, furniture (all 450 lots) was purchased by a well-known Russian businessman Alisher Usmanov for 36 million pounds sterling even before the start of the auction. In Hong Kong in September of this year, a ring with a bright blue cut diamond weighing six carats was sold for a record amount, he went under the hammer for $ 8 million.
News
November 14 Sotheby's auction house in Geneva (Switzerland) will sell one of the world's largest diamonds. For a stone weighing 84.37 carats, the organizers of the auction plan to raise $12-16 million. The winner of the auction will have the right to name a colorless, crystal clear and impeccably polished symmetrical stone in their own name or in honor of a loved one.
On December 11, the Oscar statuette awarded in 1941 for Orson Welles' film Citizen Kane will be put up for sale in New York. Organizers of the auction hope to gain from 800 thousand to 1 million 200 thousand dollars for this lot. The cost of the statuette is influenced by the fact that it was the only Oscar awarded to the film Citizen Kane, a film that is considered one of the best in the history of cinema. The award then went to the creators - for the best script.
Address: 1334 York Avenue, New York, NY 10021
The history of Sotheby's, one of the oldest art auctions in the world, began in 1744 in London. The company's founder, Samuel Baker, originally sold books by auction. At an early stage of activity, the richest libraries in the world from the collection of prominent figures, including the library of Napoleon Bonaparte, passed through the firm.
By the end of the First World War, the Sotheby's auction house had significantly expanded its scope of activity and was already trading in other rarities - engravings, medals and coins. In addition, the firm moved to the famous building on New Bond Street, which to this day remains its London residence. Moving to this fashionable street marked the beginning of a new era in the history of Sotheby's - finally, the sale of paintings and other works of art began to bring a significant part of the profit in comparison with the turnover in the second-hand book market. Thanks to a change in profile, the company achieved a record growth in turnover in the 60s under the leadership Peter Wilson.
It was Wilson, who came to Sotheby's in 1936, who brought the company to the international level. He provided the company with a huge profit from the sale of Impressionist and Modernist paintings, which enjoyed unheard of popularity. Perhaps the most sensational and significant during Wilson's tenure in the firm's management were the auctions that took place in 1958 and went down in history under the name "Goldschmidt auctions". All seven paintings put up for auction were sold within just 21 minutes. The proceeds were £781,000, at the time a record high for sales of fine art. Paul Mellon bought Cezanne's painting "The Boy in the Red Waistcoat" for £220,000, five times the previous record for a painting sold at auction. Goldschmidt auction became one of the most significant cultural events in 1958 and, perhaps, the most exciting art auction of the century.
Mainly thanks to the intuition of Peter Wilson, Sotheby's was the first of the auction houses to recognize the prospects of trading in works of art on the international market. That is why in 1955 the company opened a representative office in New York, and in 1964 made an even more far-sighted decision to acquire the auction company Park Burnet, the largest auction house in the United States specializing in works of art. By becoming the property of Sotheby's, the Park Burnet auction house has taken a key position in the rapidly growing North American market for Impressionist and Modernist paintings.
Having included the largest American auction house, Sotheby's continued to look for ways to expand its influence. Over time, representative offices of the company opened around the world.
Sotheby's holds over 350 auctions a year, most of which take place in two main trading floors - in New York and London. The rest of the auctions are held in foreign trading floors - in Hong Kong, Amsterdam, Geneva, Paris, Milan, Zurich, Melbourne and Singapore.
Purchase at Sotheby's auction
- Everyone can take part in Sotheby's auctions absolutely free of charge. Approximately 3-7 days before the start of the auction, the lots are put on public display. Bidding catalogs are available approximately one month before the auction. The catalogs contain a detailed description of each lot, information about its origin and exposure, links to references in specialized literature and an approximate cost. The electronic version of the catalogs can be viewed on the website of the auction house in English, French and Italian.
- You can offer a price for a lot put up for auction by visiting the auction in person or by submitting an application for absentee participation. The application form is attached on the last page of any Sotheby's catalog. In some cases, it is allowed to accept a bid from a potential buyer by phone.
- The auction house "Sotheby's" charges a commission, the so-called percentage of the buyer. The commission is added to the highest price offered by the auction winner (the auction price) and is included in the total purchase price.
- Payments accepted for purchases include checks or money orders, Visa, MasterCard and American Express credit cards, and cash (subject to certain restrictions).
- You can receive the purchased lot on the trading floor or by mail.
