At last, someone knows how to play this game: It’s Oliver Barker, the Sotheby’s auctioneer who succeeded in whipping up a spirited $284.54-million Contemporary Art sale tonight (preceded by the Mandel Collection‘s $107.8-million opening act), playing the crowd with cheery exhortations, while moving things briskly along.
Screenshot from tonight’s Contemporary Art sale
The hammer total for the Contemporary sale was $246.3 million, within the presale estimate of $207.7-285.6 million. The Mandel hammer total was $91.95 million, within the $72.9-105.3 million presale estimate.
Here’s my running Twitter account of the lively, high-spirited proceedings:
Oliver Barker, @Sothebys auctioneer for the evening, is going gangbusters. No long pauses tonight. Opening sale, the Mandel Collection, gets an auction record for a Rothko work on paper: $18.86m pic.twitter.com/v174dGnGYs
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 16, 2018
This is Oliver Barker’s party & we’re just crashing it. Celebratory atmosphere @Sothebys after the Mandel Collection warm-up sale, which got cheers for relatively modest works. Bradford, Lot 1 of the main event, at $5.7m & couting vs $2-3m est. pic.twitter.com/Phs6jrLazh
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 16, 2018
Hammers at $5.8m. This is the first of the works donated by artists to benefit @StudioMuseum‘s new Adjaye building, which may help to explain the wild whoops for the first lot.
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 16, 2018
People were shouting out bids for this one: Lynette Yiadom-Boakye. First 3 have trounced estimates. $450,000 vs. $150,000 high estimate pic.twitter.com/dID3HMXy2i
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Last of 5 works for @StudioMuseum capital project. (More will be in the Day Sale.) Bids are flying for Crosby: $2.1m & counting vs high est. of $800,000 pic.twitter.com/j5uexXJJPH
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Njideka Akunyili Crosby hits $2.8m. Thelma Golden is golden!
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
#AuctionUpdate: Tonight’s sale of works donated by artists to benefit @studiomuseum new building project is 100% sold, totaling $16.4 million – with 37 works to be offered in tomorrow’s #SothebysContemporary Art Day auction
— Sotheby’s (@Sothebys) May 17, 2018
Kerry James Marshall’s auction record was $5.04m. Now it hammers at $18.5m. “I don’t have to tell you how great this is,” says Barker, relishing every moment. The crowd’s reaction is beginning to resemble a revival meeting. Revival of auction enthusiasm? pic.twitter.com/0ese2OZwya
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
“Not sure if they were buying our selling,” Barker chuckles as manic cheers greet the $1.8m hammer for a Barkley Hendricks with a $1m high estimate.
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Hockney Swimming Pool, high estimate at $7m, gets $10.2m, trouncing artist’s record for a work on paper. Bodes well for more splashy Hockney coming later. pic.twitter.com/UhNKAeLiOi
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Works by artists who are auction staples are attracting more sober bidding than the excitement that greeted fresher faces. Same old, same old?
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Off the walls of the Hockney retrospective @MetMuseum. “Pacific Coast Highway & Santa Monica” stalls at $25m, midway in $20-30m est. pic.twitter.com/2TbUEd4loj
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Moments ago, #DavidHockney more than doubled his previous auction record. Read more about the $28.5 million ‘Pacific Coast Highway and Santa Monica’ here: https://t.co/vYoHwkMiAd pic.twitter.com/FRfZAu7e1i
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) May 17, 2018
Basquiat “Flesh and Spirit,” est. “in the region of $30m” stalls at $27m and sells there. Had been the subject of a legal dispute. https://t.co/VVLRgzfJ2o pic.twitter.com/iIRco8Kcbo
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Ok, so Barker isn’t perfect. A drab Kusama early painting on egg cartons fails to sell at $6.5m vs $7m low estimate. Dealer Jeffrey Deitch stands next to it at the presale exhibition pic.twitter.com/gVXELFFS6A
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Fast and furious on Cecily Brown’s “Suddenly Last Summer.” This crowd wants what it wants. “Any more? Gimme 6,” commands Barker. No, it goes for $5.8m vs $2.5m high est. Trounces Brown’s previous $2.42m auction record. pic.twitter.com/e48yUgKQ6O
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Another of @BerkshireMuseum‘s deplorable deaccessions is given away at half its low estimate. Calder sells at a mere $1m vs. $2m low estimate. Make this stop! pic.twitter.com/8Jr3husLfd
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Are we having fun yet? Oliver Barker overcomes our auction ennui presiding over @Sothebys Contemporary sale with vigorous, enthusiastic auctioneering. This is how it’s done pic.twitter.com/btxXEPDF0c
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
“Thank you for enjoying such a wonderful evening with us,” glowed Barker, having won over the audience (or what was left of it). By my count, only 2 of the 48 works in @Sothebys main contemporary sale failed to sell. All 26 sold in the Mandel curtain-raiser
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018
Contemporary sale @Sothebys tonight totaled $284.54m (with buyer’s premium). Mandel Collection curtain-raiser totaled $107.8m. Hammer totals for both ($246.3m & $91.95m, respectively) were squarely within their presale estimate ranges.
— Lee Rosenbaum (@CultureGrrl) May 17, 2018