Auction houses

‘The world's most expensive banana’: Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian fetches $6.2m at Sotheby’s New York

The buyer, the collector and crypto investor Justin Sun, immediately vowed to eat the banana

For these US auction houses, Antiques Roadshow-style appraisal days have been a wise investment

“Every now and then you strike gold,” says the general manager of Bonhams Skinner

Painting by the AI robot Ai-Da sells for more than $1m at Sotheby’s

It’s a new record for a work of art created by a robot, the auction house says

Art marketanalysis

Christie’s and Sotheby’s pin hopes for New York November sales on single-owner collections

In a subdued market, the season’s most promising auctions are of estates

Art marketcomment

Comment | Popping the hood: what’s driving sales of luxury cars at auction houses

Christie's acquisition of Gooding & Company has renewed focus on collectible automobiles

Sotheby’s to hold first ever commercial auction in Saudi Arabia in February

The auction house will hold the sale in the historic town of Diriyah, offering Modern and contemporary art as well as handbags, cars and sports memorabilia

Technologyanalysis

How auction houses are embracing artificial intelligence

New services such as AI-enhanced translation are proving popular, even as human involvement remains crucial

Painting by AI robot Ai-Da could bring more than $120,000 at Sotheby's

The robotic brainchild of British gallerist Aidan Meller will make her auction debut on Halloween

Large Ed Ruscha gas station painting could bring more than $50m at Christie's after star turns at Lacma and MoMA

The 1964 painting was a prominent feature in the artist’s recent travelling retrospective

Art marketanalysis

Amid cutbacks, big art market players are still chasing growth

Mega-dealers and auction houses are shrinking some areas while expanding others

'A statement in difficult times': Christie's opens new Hong Kong headquarters

The auction house will hold its first live evening sale in the new Zaha Hadid Architects-designed Henderson Building today

Late Freud nude to make auction debut in London with £10m-£15m estimate

Ria, Naked Portrait (2006-07) depicts an art handler who approached the artist, then in his 80s, to pose for the painting

Magritte painting could bring more than $95m at Christie's marquee New York sales this autumn

If it goes for the auction house's estimate, "L'empire des lumières" (1954), from the collection of late interior designer Mica Ertegun, would set an auction record for the Surrealist artist

Christie's will become first global auction house to operate in Saudi Arabia

With the announcement of Riyadh-based managing director Nour Kelani, the firm hopes to deepen ties with the Kingdom's collectors and ambitious cultural projects

Christie’s to acquire classic car auction house

Gooding & Company was founded in 2003 by a former Christie’s director

Bonhams will move New York headquarters to historic site on Billionaires' Row

The auction house is expected to relocate its New York operation to 57th Street by the end of 2025

Sotheby’s core earnings down by 88%, according to Financial Times report

A document sent to investors, and seen by the newspaper, ahead of investment from Abu Dhabi’s wealth fund also reveals a 25% drop in auction sales

Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund to acquire minority stake in Sotheby's

Patrick Drahi will remain auction house's majority shareholder in $1bn deal, as ADQ buys shares to "reduce leverage" and support "growth and innovation"

Bonhams appoints former luxury goods head as global chief executive

Chabi Nouri, who previously led the watch and jewellery company Piaget, replaces Bruno Vinciguerra

Christie’s reportedly planning layoffs

Rival Sotheby’s recently entered a consultation period ahead of redundancies

Christie's hit with class action lawsuit over exposure of clients' personal data in cyberattack

The complaint, filed on 3 June by a Dallas-based customer, is the latest problem for the auction house following a major cyberattack

Sotheby’s to lay off dozens of employees in UK with further cuts planned in other locations

Auction house is in “consultation period” ahead of redundancies, sources say

Hackers claim responsibility for Christie's cyberattack and threaten to release client data

The group RansomHub say they are behind the attack that took down the auction house's website earlier this month

Bonhams executive Alex Fortescue has died aged 55

His death was confirmed by Epiris, the private equity firm that owns the auction house

African art market confronts economic turbulence on the continent

Despite currency collapse of Nigeria's naira and a weakened South African rand, the category performed better than the overall market

Phillips's evening auction in New York notches $72.3m, buoyed by two fresh Basquiat paintings

The sale's hammer total fell short of its estimate, but also represented an increase of 24% over the equivalent auction in 2023

Christie’s website brought down by hackers days before marquee spring auctions

The auction giant’s web address currently redirects to a placeholder page where telephone numbers for its various offices are listed

Benjamin Sutton. With additional reporting by Carlie Porterfield

Haystack painting by Claude Monet could sell for more than $30m at Sotheby’s New York

Sotheby’s will sell a rare Monet haystack five years after a similar work broke the artist’s record at auction

Vivienne Westwood’s personal wardrobe goes under the hammer—with a nod to Keith Haring

More than 200 items spanning 40 years will be sold with part of the sale proceeds going to charity