bLavish

Richard Avedon Photographs To Be Auctioned At Christie’s

November 8, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Auctions at 8:16 pm | Comments off

Richard Avedon’s elegant fashion photographs are some of the most iconic images of our time. In his lifetime, he photographed celebrities, models, and other beautiful people in quirky, inimitable style. On November 20th, Christie’s will be auctioning off some of his most arresting images.

Christie’s says of the collection up for auction, “The present lot is the largest print of this photograph in existence. It was made for the tour of Avedon’s 1978 Metropolitan Museum of Art fashion retrospective. Following its return from the exhibition tour, this print greeted visitors near the entrance to Avedon’s New York studio for 25 years. Since 2005, it has been installed inside the entrance to the offices of The Richard Avedon Foundation.”

The portrait above, of model Domiva in a sophisticated gown by Dior, is typical of his work. He had a knack for creating textural and cultural contrasts without taking away any of his subject’s beauty. This piece is expected to fetch between $560,000 and $850,000, and is the most expensive of the lot.

The $68.9 Million Modigliani

November 3, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Artsy Fartsy, Auctions at 9:43 pm | Comments off

Modigliani is one of those artists that has inspired a cultish fan base. But his paintings have, at most, fetched only modest profits when compared to some of his contemporaries, such as Picasso. His 1917 portrait, “Nude Sitting on a Divan”, or “The Beautiful Romanian” earned the artist a new record high at 68.9 million dollars.

The asking price was only $40 million, about $24 million more than the previous owner paid for it in 1999. I’m not sure what the rate of inflation is, but I’m betting that he made a pretty good deal, here. Don’t for a second, though, assume that all that cash ends up in the hands of the seller. According to the New York Times, “final prices include the buyer’s commission to Sotheby’s: 25 percent of the first $50,000; 20 percent of the next $50,000 to $1 million; and 12 percent of the rest. Estimates do not reflect commissions.”

Sixty other paintings sold, including works by Monet and Matisse. Modigliani’s most expensive piece, previous to this sale, was for a bronze statue sold in June that went for $52.6 million. Sotheby’s “Impressionist and Modernist” sale garnered a total of $227.5 million, smack in the middle of its estimated $195-$266 million in sales.

Christie’s “Important Watches” Auction This Month

November 2, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Auctions at 11:30 pm | Comments off

Christie’s Auction house has sold off some of the most important art and jewelry collections in history. When you think of watches, they may not be the first name that you think of, but that’s just an oversight on your part. Every fall, Christie’s offers a collection of some of the rarest and most beautiful watches. This year, the “Important Watches” collection goes up for sale on November 15th, in Geneva.

The five watches expected to draw the highest bids are all 18 karat gold Patek Phillipe pieces like the one shown above. Well, not exactly like the one above. This one, which is very rare and features a perpetual calendar, is expected to fetch between $500,000 and $800,000. The most expensive watch up for sale is a Patek Phillipe watch that is described as an “exceptionally rare and highly important 18K pink gold two crown world time wristwatch with 24 hour indication and blue enamel dial.” It is expected to go for between $1.5 and $2.5 million.

All told, 386 watches are up for bid, including watches by Omega, Cartier, Rolex, Movado, and Chopard.

Christie’s Post War And Contemporary Art Auction This Week

October 13, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Artsy Fartsy, Auctions at 10:50 pm | Comments off

The preeminent art auction house, Christie’s has brokered the sales of some of the most famous, and most expensive paintings in the world. This week in London, they are auctioning off 207 pieces of extraordinary art from the Post War period, and also contemporary works. The Post War period (meaning art produced after 1945, the end of WWII) is one of the most important periods in all of art history. Work from this period has been particularly popular amongst British and American collectors. This offering, which is up for bid until October 14th, features paintings by some of the most interesting artists working from 1945 up to the present, including Andy Warhol, Gerhard Ricther, and Robert Longo.

The painting above, entitled “Concertto Spaziale, Attese, by Lucio Fontana is expected be one of the highest selling items up for bid. It is expected to sell for between $474,000 and $633,000. Lucio Fontana was an Italian artist who worked in Argentina for most of his career. He is widely praised for his avant garde approach to painting. Fontana discard the notion that painting was about illusion, and made pieces that were punctured in a gestural way. His work focuses on dimensionality and the play of color and light.

Also at the top of the list in the catalog, in terms of price, are one of Warhol’s famous flower paintings and a portrait he did of Carlo Monzino.

Paul Rubens Painting A Commander Being Armed for Battle Sells At Auction

July 7, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Auctions at 9:12 am | Comments off

Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens’ “A Commander being armed for Battle” painting has been sold at auction for $13.68 million.  The painting was sold by the family of the late Princess Diana on Tuesday to help pay to preserve the Spencer family home.

The painting is part of a Spencer collection sell-off of approximately $30 million designed to help preserve the family home. Althorp is undergoing a major restoration and the trustees of the estate decided to sell artwork deemed not integral to the Spencer Collection. Diana’s brother Earl Spencer also sold off “King David” by Baroque artist Il Guercino for 5.2 million pounds. Overall the auction raised 42.3 million pounds solidly mid-range against an estimate of 36.9-55.8 million pounds.

World’s Largest Gold Coin Sells For $4 Million

June 28, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Auctions at 9:58 am | Comments off

The world’s largest gold coin has been sold at auction for four times its face value worth due to the current exorbitant prices of gold.

Minted by the Royal Canadian Mint, this 100-kilo Queen Elizabeth II gold coin sold for $4 million at the Dorotheum auction house in Austria.  The value of the coin is actually $1 million, but when gold is this scarce, prices will keep going up, won’t they?

Original 007 Astin Martin DB5 for Auction

June 2, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Auctions at 10:51 am | (1) Comment »

RM Auctions will be auctioning off the most expensive car of its kind – one of only two – and only one remaining – original 007 Aston Martin DB5 movie car at its October 27, 2010 “Automobiles of London” auction at Battersea Evolution in London.

Two Aston Martin DB5s were used on screen for the production of the timeless 1960’s James Bond classics, Goldfinger and Thunderball. One of those two cars was reported stolen in 1997 and is believed to have been destroyed. The other is the FMP 7B, which will be auctioned off. The car features silver birch exterior paint and dark gray leather interior.

Bond’s Aston Martin DB5 and its gadgets were the brainchild of Oscar-award-winning special effects expert John Stears, also of Star Wars and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang fame. The car was sold in 1969 to American Jerry Lee, who became FMP 7B’s first ex-factory and remaining owner. The car was originally purchased from the Aston Martin factory for $12,000. For a time, Lee agreed to allow Aston Martin to continue to use FMP 7B for promotional purposes in the United States. Today, the odometer shows approximately 30,000 miles, primarily from its tour usage. A careful re-commissioning program was recently undertaken by RM Auto Restoration, returning the car to running condition after its long-term static storage.

Proceeds of the sale of FMP 7B (which are anticipated to be around $5 million) will be used to further the charitable work of ‘The Jerry Lee Foundation’, a multi-national initiative dedicated to solving social problems associated with poverty, with an emphasis on crime prevention. RM Auctions is the world’s largest collector car auction house and specializes in investment-quality automobiles, holding four of the top five world record prices for motor cars sold at auction.  For more information, visit www.rmauctions.com.

Treskilling Yellow Stamp Sold For Record Price

May 25, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Auctions at 9:17 am | Comments off

Reportedly an auctioneer is claiming that the coveted Swedish “Treskilling Yellow” stamp has been sold at auction for a record breaking price.

Over the weekend the extremely rare stamp was sold at an auction in Geneva for a currently undisclosed amount, though the stamp has at least been sold for $2.3 million.

The stamp is believed to be the only surviving misprint of an 1855 three shilling stamp that was supposed to be green. It has fabled status among collectors and is considered one of the world’s most valuable objects for its size.

Picasso Painting Nude, Green Leaves and Bust Sells For Record Amount

May 5, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Artsy Fartsy, Auctions at 8:47 am | Comments off

The 1932 Pablo Picasso painting Nude, Green Leaves and Bust has sold for a record amount at auction.

The painting of Picasso’s mistress sold for an astounding $106.5 million, a world record for any work of art sold at auction.  With a pre-sale estimate of around $80 million, no one was as surprised as Christie’s auction house when the painting sold for such a high amount to an unidentified telephone bidder on Tuesday.

Congratulations to the high luxury bidder, may you wear your mistress proudly.

Austin Auction Gallery Luxurious Opal Necklace

March 30, 2010 | Posted by bLavish as Auctions, Jewelry at 8:16 am | (1) Comment »

Up for auction April 18 at the Austin Auction Gallery is this stunning and rare Opal Necklace.

While the background of this luxury jewelry piece is still not clear, this necklace may have belonged to interior designer Elsie de Wolfe, the first famous American designer to work for the rich and famous.

The necklace auction will start with an opening bid of $30,000 and is expected to go for at least double that amount.

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