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The Wholesale Collapse of the Art Market
Only kidding. All the same, don't look for big headlines from this week's impressionist and modern art auctions at Christie's and Sotheby's. Last November's impressionist/modern sale at Christie's was the richest art auction in history, bringing in $491 million. At the pre-sale viewing the galleries were thick with major canvases by Gauguin, Kirchner, Modigliani, Picasso. Even if you think of the current art market as a tragicomic episode in the history of shopping -- I do -- there was no denying that it was major work that was being squashed into merchandise last year. There's a reason they talk about "bringing down the hammer".
But at both houses the February auctions in New York tend to be more modest affairs. Last year Christie's February sale brought in just about $2.3 million. Sotheby's eked out just under $3.4 million. Having visited Christie's Friday to catch the viewing for their Feb. 14 sale, I can tell you that this year will be no exception. There were some major names on the walls. Manet, Renoir, Pissarro, Monet, Cezanne, Arp, Dali, etc. Nearly all of them were represented by minor work. Sketches, gouaches, studies, tiny watercolors. If you want a large canvas, you have your choice of lesser names -- Marcel Gromaire, Andre Brasilier, etc. And lots of shrill, confectionary color. February auction viewings offer a rare chance to see work by painters like Jos Pauwels and Yvonne Canu, crucial figures in the transition between the School of Paris and the School of Wal Mart.
The story over at Sotheby's, where the sale starts Feb. 15, is not very different. Among recognizable names they have a Modigliani drawing and two bronze reliefs by Renoir. But their major offering is a 1965 oil by Jean-Pierre Cassigneul -- not exactly a staple of the art history books -- with a high estimate of $70,000.
Don't assume from any of this that the comically over heated art market is slowing down. The London auctions of post war and contemporary art set records again just last week. But those had nothing to do with Yvonne Canu.
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1
There is a lot more to art and the art market than big names. If your a pompous name dropper who dosn't know much about art, you might only buy a big name. However, if you are a true art lover, and have perhaps more modest means, you might jump at the chance to buy a Canu oil. Mr. Lacayo should broaden his interests.
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2
I own a Canu. I can understand your comment but she is better than you describe. Criticize the many hundreds of contemporary artists who get millions for their work. They have talent but most of them waste their talent on B.S. art. although everyone knows that art is subjective to some degree. I own a number of paintings including a Valtat and Gromaire but my personal favorite is my least expensive painting that was bought a few months ago. The artist is Morris Broderson and the painting cost 200 dollars at a Christie's House Sale. The painting is based on the famous Spanish poem, "The Lament for Ignazio Sanchez I." He was featured in your magazine in 1964 as an outstanding young artist. He never made it big but some of his paintings hang in the Guggenheim, Whitney and other famous places. His deafness and other tortures of life perhaps gave him an insight that will be more appreciated in the future.
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