Sotheby's opened the season with what would turn out to be the most successful sale of the three selections of Latin American art that were offered to collectors this November in New York.
Amelia Pelaez beautiful Still Life was actively pursued by two stubborn collectors on the phones and sold above the estimated $180,000/220,000 to achieve $314,500, the following lot, a Portocarrero Interior del Cerro had been estimated at $70,000/90,000 and realized $134,500
But it was in the more contemporary part of the sale that we see a constant increase in value and sustained interest: A work by Soto from 1960, La Scie a metaux (the hackshaw) was estimated at $700,000/900,000 and realized $1,082,500, a Cildo Meireles, serie C had carried an estimate of $150,000/200,000 and also sold above the estimate at $230,500, indicating that the Brazilian sector of the contemporary works continues holding strong.
At Christie's a pristine white Camargo, Relief No. 175 carried an estimate of $150,000/200,000 and realized a total of $314,500, Carmen Herrera, the Cuban minimalist that has been successfully exhibiting in London to rave reviews sold her Amarillo dos (from the series Estructuras) soared from the estimated $90,000 to achieve a new record for the artist at $170,500. Iberé Camargo also achieved a new record when his Jogo de carretéis I realized a stunning $422,500 leaving far behind the estimated $120,000/180,000, a beautiful Cildo Meireles, constructed from carpenter rulers, carried an estimate of $120,000/180,000 and sold for $122,500.
Also at Christie's an early work by Adriana Varejao that is clearly indebted to the Brazilian baroque tradition , Relicario do braço de Såo Bento had an estimate of $200,000/300,000 and realized $242,500. A humorous self portrait by Vik Muñiz that showed his image front and back sold above the estimated $60,000/80,000 after a hard bidding competition that settled the price at $98,500. Not all the success was due to Brazilian works, other sectors performed just as well, the Venezuelan Soto and Cruz Diez performed very well as usual, and the Colombian Olga de Amaral realized a new world record when her gold Montaña surpassed the estimated $40,000/60,000 selling at $103,300. The rate of unsold works in the evening sale was much higher at Christie's though, perhaps due to the slow pace of the session or confusion with the catalogue cover. It featured a painting by Rodolfo Morales on the cover that was removed due to questions of authenticity and a new catalogue cover was printed in time to replace it with a wonderful Tamayo, Man with Birds which sold successfully at $338,000 (est. $300,000/500,000).
At Phillips, which has always kept a closer watch on contemporary trends than the more traditional general overview of Christie's and Sotheby's the sale was a resounding success and particularly in the Brazilian art selection. The highest price in the sale went to Antonio Dias, Free Continent:Natural Richnesses, 1968-1969 which had been estimated at $250,000/350,000 but climbed quickly to an amazing $434,500, a new record for the artist. Lygia Pape had two works in the sale which performed very well, the first one, Four elements from the Night and Day Book, 1963/1976 was estimated at $100,000/150,000 and sold for $206,500, the second was O olho do guará (No. 13) which sold above the estimated $150,000/250,000 for $266,500. Cildo Meireles Inserçoes em circuitos ideológicos, 1970 performed particularly well when the estimated $50,000/70,000 almost tripled the high end selling for an incredible $200,500. Vik Muñiz's Rouen Cathedral Façade (Gray Day) was another success when it sold for $47,500 surpassing ...