Sotheby’s last night raised $155 million from a London auction of just 35 lots, led by a townscape by Egon Schiele that sold for an artist record.
Collectors responded to a limited supply of Impressionist and modern artworks by raising bids. The Austrian Expressionist’s 1914 canvas “Houses With Laundry (Suburb II)” was offered by the Leopold Museum, Vienna, to pay for the settlement of one of the world’s longest-running art restitution cases. It made 24.7 million pounds ($40 million).
“The supply of Impressionist and modern works is dwindling,’’ said the London-based dealer Stephen Ongpin. “That’s pushing up competition for fresh pieces that appear. Sotheby’s made the most of a tight sale.’’
Bidders are eager to buy the best works and happy to pass on others. Sotheby's (BID) selection meant only three lots were unsuccessful. The event was slimmed down from 51 lots in the equivalent sale last year. It contrasted with Tuesday’s sale of 92 works at Christie’s International, which raised 140 million pounds with a Monet work as a high-profile failure.
The Schiele was one of three works that bore third-party price guarantees. It sold to a single telephone bid from Mark Poltimore, Sotheby’s London-based head of Russian art, against the unidentified guarantor, also bidding by phone. The painting had been estimated to sell for a minimum of 22 million pounds.
The previous auction high for Schiele was the $22.4 million paid for another townscape at Christie’s International in New York in November 2006. Oils by this short-lived artist (1890- 1918) rarely come on sale, said dealers.
