NEW YORK: Works by Soutine, Cezanne, Picasso and Modigliani were expected to shine at red-hot spring auctions of Impressionist and Modern art here.
Rivals Christie’s and Sotheby’s say the market, long recovered from the post-2008 financial crisis slump, is in better than buoyant mood. Last year, Sotheby’s Modern and Impressionist auction notched up a record-setting $119.9m sale of a version of Edvard Munch’s The Scream.
This time, the main stars are expected to be Paul Cezanne’s Les Pommes, along with Amedeo Modigliani’s L’Amazone, and sculptures by Rodin and Picasso.
A total of 70 works are up for sale today, with an estimated value of $165m. Les Pommes, a landmark still life of apples on a table, is estimated to fetch between $25m-$35m. Les Pommes is one of Cezanne’s most perfect still lifes” said Charles Moffett, vice chairman of Sotheby’s Impressionist and Modern Art. “These moving compositions, which explore the paradoxes of forms in space, inspired the Cubism of Picasso and Braque and signal the birth of modern art.”
Modigliani’s L’Amazone, estimated at $20m-$30m, was painted early in his career in 1909 and shows the glamorous Baroness Marguerite de Hasse de Villers.
Picasso’s statue Sylvette, estimated at $12m-$18m, is expected to get attention. Sotheby’s will also be selling three Rodin bronzes, including a version of Le Penseur, or The Thinker, estimated at $8m-$12m.
The Christie’s sale tomorrow will be led by Soutine’s Le Petit Patissier, (The Little Pastry Chef), estimated at $16m-$22m, and Andre Derain’s 1905 Portrait de Madame Matisse au kimono, estimated at $15m-$20m.
Reuters
