Some General Art News

Lindsay Pollock and Scott Reyburn of Bloomberg have a very good Art Buzz column.  The two touch on 39 major pieces of art to be auctioned by Sotheby's in New York including paintings by Monet, Degas and Picasso, from the collection of Dutch financier Louis Reijtenbagh, in addition to review that upcoming auction sale, the pair touch on a recent watch auction sale at Sotheby's in NY with 161 lot totaling $3.15 million. This figure is above the $2 million low end estimate in the . About 90 percent of the lots found buyers which is a very good sell through rate. They also follow up on the Frieze art fair where a day after the sale a Picasso sold for 6.6 million (see image).

The article is a good recap of some activity in the fine and decorative arts world and worth reading in gaining a better feel for the economy and state of affairs in the fine and decorative arts markets.

A Picasso painting that had been on show last week at London’s Pavilion of Art & Design with a price of 4 million pounds ($6.6 million) has found a buyer.

Picasso’s 1954 “Portrait de Sylvette,’’ offered by the Mayfair-based Lefevre Fine Art, was sold to an anonymous collector on Oct. 19, the day after the fair closed, said the London art dealer and agent Kenny Schachter, who was representing the client, in an e-mail.

The 2-foot-6-inch-high canvas was one of more than 40 paintings, sculptures and drawings Picasso produced of the 19- year-old Sylvette David in the space of a month in 1954.

Alexander Corcoran, chairman of Lefevre, confirmed the sale had been made, refusing other details and citing client confidentiality.

Bacon Offer

The Picasso was shown at the “Frieze-Week” fair, held in a temporary structure in Berkeley Square and bolstered by galleries such as Lefevre and Faggionato Fine Art, which took a $9 million canvas by Francis Bacon.

To read the full Bloomberg piece, click HERE.