The Chiparus market has gone nuts (Packet & Times) and I think it's mainly down to Russian buying.
The Chiparus market has gone nuts (Packet & Times) and I think it's mainly down to Russian buying.
Sotheby's CEO Bill Ruprecht is "long" on Soviet realism (FT).
Some resources: Andrei Kovalev's recent book on Moscow Actionism of the 90s has sold out, but his flickr stream has loads of documentary photos (flickr). David Riff's blog contains occasional essays on events in Moscow, most recently Viktor Alimpiev's show at the Ekaterina Foundation (Moscow Diary). ARTinvestment.RU is a new Russian-language site analysing the market (artinvestment.ru)
Rich Russian collectors etc (FT).
My column looking at the Sotsart market, and in particular at the show Glasnost/Perestroika which opened at Diehl + Gallery One, Moscow, is up (Open Space/Art Times, in Russian). Apparently a version of the Diehl show is planned for Haunch of Venison, London, early next year.
Apparently, Abramovich is propping up not only English and Russian football but also the art market at the top end; but the "middle-market" of $50-500K is wobbly (Scott Reyburn/Bloomberg).
My review of the recent contemporary Russian art sales in London is up (Open Space/Art Times, in Russian). Also worth a look, perhaps: the erudite Ieremiya Khertsog's regular column. I note that, in the opening para, Ieremiya says that his favourite London restaurant is Manzi's. I can't quarrel with that, if only because I've never eaten there. But I'd add that it's been closed for a while and was recently acquired by Fergus Henderson, founder of the famous St John restaurant, who plans to preserve its unique atmosphere (actually, this news is exclusive to IZO). Mr Henderson's wife, Margot, it so happens, prepared the Melnikov Garage Amy Winehouse Gig meal.
A review of Russian sale week in London (Colin Gleadell/Daily Telegraph).
Christies' sale yesterday failed to meet the low estimate (John Varoli/Bloomberg):
Only three of the top 10 lots and 66 percent of the 298 items offered sold. (...) The results jolted a market used to auction records. Many dealers and collectors said Christie's estimates on Russian art were too high, considering prices of other types of artworks might rise faster.
They were too high, no doubt, because of the pressure on auction houses to win business, which leads to inflated estimates. The entry into the fray of the very energetic and succesful Macdougall auction house, and Bonhams' continuing determination to compete, has put big pressure on Sotheby's and Christies. But, that said, in this inflated market, this kind of failure had to happen to somebody sometime.
Goncharova performed OK, but at low estimate: £1.7 million at Bonhams, £2.28 million and £1.16 million at Sotheby's yesterday. Aivazovsky reached £1.83 million at Sotheby's, Korovin £1.5 million approximately, Kustodiev £1 million and Serebryakova £1 million; the other £1 million+ estimated work, Chagall's rather gloomy Alla, seems not to have sold. Bonhams non-conformists sold very patchily. See also reports by John Varoli/Bloomberg: Bonhams and Sotheby's.
