A caucasian man holding a gavel up at a Christie's auction of a Monet waterlilies painting, with the crowd held their smart phones up snapping the moment.
An enthusiastic crowd armed with camera phones capture the moment of auctioneer Adrien Meyer selling Claude Monet's Nymphéas at Christie's Hong Kong 20th/21st Century Art Inaugural Evening Sale at the Henderson on September 26, 2024.

September is not ordinarily a major marquee auction month, but the stats this time around, with all top lots well into the millions—the lowest price of the ten was $5.4 million—would seem to belie that. All were achieved at just two sales: Christie’s Hong Kong evening auction of 20th- and 21st-century art, and at Galerie Kornfeld’s mid-September auction in Bern, Switzerland.

The list is an eclectic mix of Impressionist and modern works by the likes of Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet alongside classics from Zao Wou-ki and Kim Whan-ki, and a more contemporary offering from blue chip star artists George Condo.

1. Vincent Van Gogh, Les canots amarrés (1887)

Vincent van Gogh, Les canots amarrés (1887). Image courtesy Christie’s.

Estimate: HK$ 230 million to HK$ 380 million ($29.5 million to $48.8 million)

Final Price: HK$ 250.6 million ($32 million)

Where & When: Christie’s Hong Kong, September 26, 2024

2.Claude Monet, Nymphéas, (ca. 1897-1899)

Claude Monet, Nymphéas (circa 1897-1899). Image courtesy Christie’s.

Estimate: $HK200 million to $HK280 million ($25.7 million to $40 million)

Final Price: $HK233 million ($30 million)

Where & When: Christie’s Hong Kong, September 26, 2024

3. Zao Wou-ki, 05.06.80 – Triptyque, (1980)

Zao Wou-ki, 05.06.80 – Triptyque. Image courtesy Christie’s.

Estimate: HK$18 million to HK$28 million ($2.3 million to $3.6 million)

Final Price: HK$16 million ($12.2 million)

Where & When: Christie’s Hong Kong, September 26, 2024

4. Alberto Giacometti, Stèle III (1958, cast from 1958)

Alberto Giacometti, Stèle III (1958, cast from 1958) Image courtesy Galerie Kornfeld Auktionen, Bern.

Estimate: CHF 7.5 million  ($8.8 million)

Final Price: CHF 7.3 million ($8.6 million)

Where & When: Galerie Kornfeld, Bern, Switzerland, September 13, 2024

5. Kim Whan-Ki, 9-XII-71 #216, (1971)

Kim Whanki, 9-XII-71 #216 (1971). Image courtesy Christie’s.

Estimate: HK$45 million to HK$ 65 million ($5.8 million to $8.3 million)

Final Price: HK$56 million ($7.2 million)

Where & When: Christie’s Hong Kong, September 26, 2024

6. Alberto Giacometti, L’Atelier, (1951)

Alberto Giacometti, L’Atelier (1951). Image courtesy Galerie Kornfeld Kornfeld Auktionen, Bern

Estimate: CHF 6 million  ($7 million)

Final Price: CHF 5.8 million ($6.8 million)

Where & When: Galerie Kornfeld, Bern, Switzerland, September 13, 2024

7. George Condo, Prescription for the Clinically Normal (2012)

George Condo, Prescription for the Clinically Normal (2012). Image courtesy Christie’s.

Estimate: HK$40 million to HK$60 million ($5 million to $7.7 million)

Final Price: HK$48.3 million ($6.2 million)

Where & When: Christie’s Hong Kong, September 26, 2024

8. Alberto Giacometti, Femme Assise, (Aika) (1960)

Alberto Giacometti, Femme assise [Aika] (1960). Image courtesy Galerie Kornfeld Auktionen, Bern.

Estimate: CHF 5 ($5.8 million)

Final Price: CHF 5 million ($6 million)

Where & When: Galerie Kornfeld, Bern, Switzerland, September 13, 2024

9. Piet Mondrian, Ocean 4 (1914)

Piet Mondrian, Ocean 4 (1914). Image courtesy Galerie Kornfeld Auktionen, Bern.

Estimate: CHF 1 million ($1.1 million)

Final Price: CHF 5 million ($5.9 million)

Where & When: Galerie Kornfeld, Bern, Switzerland, September 13, 2024

10. Alberto Giacometti, Buste sur socie, (ca. 1957, cast from 1960-1962)

Alberto Giacometti, Buste sur socle (circa 1957, cast from 1960-1962). Image courtesy Galerie Kornfeld Auktionen, Bern

Estimate: CHF 2.5 ($2.9 million)

Final Price: CHF 4.6 million ($5.4 million)

Where & When: Galerie Kornfeld, Bern, Switzerland, September 13, 2024