Latest Christie's Stories

By Haitham Haddadin KUWAIT (Reuters) - Auction house Christie's said on Thursday it would hold its inaugural Middle East auction this month in Dubai, with contemporary and modern Arab, Asian and Western art, including work by icons like Andy Warhol. Christie's officials told a news conference in Kuwait that this was to be the first sale of its kind in the region and aims to make the Middle East a key part of the international art market. "The auction offers an unparalleled opportunity...

By Christopher Michaud NEW YORK (Reuters) - Paintings by Picasso and van Gogh, whose works have set world price records, lead the annual spring art sales at New York auction houses Sotheby's and Christie's starting next Tuesday. The highlight of Sotheby's Impressionist and modern-art sale -- expected to generate overall sales of $142 million to $197.7 million -- is Picasso's "Dora Maar with Cat," a vibrant 1941 oil depicting the artist's mistress and muse seated in a chair with a...

By Dan Wilchins NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bankrupt broker Refco Inc. kicked off its auction of its photography collection on Tuesday, as it sells off works by artists including Richard Avedon and Andreas Gursky in a bid to raise money for creditors. The auction raised $1.93 million, more than the $1 million to $1.5 million expected, a spokesman for Christie's auction house said. The auction had been expected to bring in $5 million, but may now raise more for the company that owes creditors...

By John Ruwitch HONG KONG (Reuters) - The thick brush strokes, brilliant colors and angular figure of Dora Maar depicted in Pablo Picasso's 1941 painting of his mistress and a cat are a world away from the delicate detail of traditional Chinese scrolls. Nevertheless, "Dora Maar au Chat" and more than two dozen other works by Western impressionist and contemporary masters like Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh, Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein were on display in Hong Kong this month -- and not...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - An 1841 Venetian landscape by J.M.W. Turner sold for $35.8 million on Thursday, becoming the most expensive British painting ever sold at auction, according to Christie's. The oil painting, "Giudecca, La Donna della Salute and San Giorgio," was purchased over the telephone by a private collector, the auction house said. The previous record for a British painting sold at auction was $21 million in 1990 for John Constable's "The Lock," and the highest previous price...

By Daniel Trotta NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nostalgic New Yorkers, film fans and Eloise enthusiasts can buy a little piece of history next week when Christie's auction house sells select items from The Plaza hotel to the public. The landmark hotel overlooking a corner of Central Park since 1907 was sold in 2004 and is undergoing a major renovation, leading the new owners to empty the hotel of its classic furnishings. Among the items on sale on Wednesday: a humidor the size of a china...

By Dan Wilchins NEW YORK (Reuters) - Christie's said on Wednesday that it will sell more than 500 photographs by artists such as Richard Avedon and Cindy Sherman from the collection of bankrupt commodities trader Refco Inc. The collection, to be sold in 340 lots spread across three auctions and is expected to bring in more than $5 million, Christie's said. The photographs cost Refco about $3.5 million, the company's curator said. Refco is selling off assets to pay back creditors after...

LONDON (Reuters) - An 1842 watercolor by JMW Turner could well set a saleroom record when it goes under the hammer in June, auctioneers Christie's said on Wednesday. The Blue Rigi: Lake of Lucerne is expected to fetch more than two million pounds ($3.47 million), putting it on target to beat the current record for a Turner watercolor on paper of 2.04 million pounds set in 2001 by Heidelberg with a Rainbow. It is also within striking distance of the world record for a British work of...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A rediscovered painting of an old woman by Dutch master Rembrandt sold at auction on Thursday for $4,272,000, slightly exceeding expectations, Sotheby's auction house said. "Portrait of an Elderly Woman in a White Bonnet," which dates from around 1640, was sold to a private collector from New York. The auction house in December estimated the sale price between $3 million and $4 million. The work, whose attribution to Rembrandt had been uncertain until last year,...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A full-length portrait of George Washington by artist Charles Willson Peale sold for a record $21.3 million on Saturday at Christie's auction house. The 8-foot-tall oil painting was bought by dealer C.L. Prickett, presumably for a client, a Christie spokeswoman said. The 1779 canvas depicts a portly and rosy-cheeked Washington as Commander of the Continental Army at Princeton, New Jersey. Washington later became the first U.S. president. The sale broke the previous...