Update after March 1 - Magritte and Klimt go for almost £50m in record breaking day (see below preview)
The main auction houses deliberately hold their major auctions on the same day and at the same time. Not just to be difficult, but to make it worth the big spenders from the east time to come to London during the dreary months. So what if a tycoon fancies something from each sale while they are running simultaneously? Hmm, quite a dilemma.
Sotheby's first auction starts on March 1. Theres a mixed bag including a late (1964) Picasso which has a stupendous estimate of only £1m . Bargain !
Sotheby's have produced a very interesting short film about the Plante de Tomates which was produced during WW2. This is expected to go for over £15m, and looking at it in person you can see why. Although I find the hidden meaning attributed to it tenuous, it is clearly a beautifully produced masterpiece. Just as Van Gogh's Sunflowers are said to be indicative of his disturbed frame of mind, the expert suggests the Tomato Plant is symbolic of the dark times in which it is produced, and also the better days expected to come.
Three more Picassos were displayed in their own room, with the Tomato Plant in another room, hung on the opposite wall to a Modigliani portrait of a young man (Portrait de Baranowski). These are all expected to go for around £10m . As is the Klimt entitled "Bauerngarten", hung on a third wall of this 'stars of the show' room.
In the main room, two Basquiats (see pic) were hung alongside a large Warhol which had a double exposure effect - despite being a painting. My favourite work, a huge Basquiat with a vibrant red emblazoned on a figure with stick arms and fingers held in the air; "One Eyed Man or Xerox Face" 1982 - estimate £14m - £18m. It is pictured below with members of Picasso & Matisse Lovers London group beside.
This work goes under the hammer on March 8 so you may still have time to see it before it disappears into a wealthy persons private world .
Update #1 - After the first auction 2/3/17
Plante de Tomates - 1944 - went for £17m - 12.5% over the top estimate of £15m. Most of the big hitters performed in the same way ;-
Modigliani - Portrait de Baranowski = £16m
Picasso - Portrait de Femme Nue Assise = £13.65m & Portrait de Femme Assise dans une fauteuille sur fond blu = £12m
But one picture went way beyond, way, way beyond. Like last year, it was a Klimt that the big boys came for in a really big way. Estimated to sell for £15m tops, the hammer eventually fell at an incredible £47.9m ! Entitled "Bauerngarten", the multicoloured bed of flowers is from 1907, painted during the Belle Epoch in Vienna with which he became synonymous. It is certainly an unusual work for the great portrait artist; it has great beauty and a mysterious quality which is perhaps what lifts it into the stratospheric realm it now resides. It may have hidden depths, people were rhapsodising about it as I looked on, but I didnt think it was as special as certain collectors clearly do. The experts at Sotheby's had given it the full marketing treatment, but they would have been pleased with it being the top seller of the day, as it was hung in the same room & manner as the Tomato Plant and Baranowski portrait. To me, this is what makes viewing paintings in this environment so special. The significance of the art work can radically shift from one day to the next. This is an unmistakable sign that Klimt values are going to climb ever upwards, just as a similar record price achieved at Christies for a Magritte signals the same thing for the Belgian surrealist.
