The big art market news last month was the sale of Gustav Klimt’s final portrait, Dame mit Fächer (Lady with a Fan) at Sotheby’s London on June 27. The work, which was found still on the easel in the artist’s studio when he died, at the age of just 55, is now the most expensive artwork ever sold in Europe, where it went for a whopping (premium-inclusive) €85.3 million ($108.4 million).
The colorful canvas depicts an unknown woman standing in front of a flora-and-fauna-filled backdrop with a decorative robe falling from one shoulder. “Full of freedom and spontaneity, it reflects Klimt’s joy in painting it and in celebrating beauty in its purest form,” read a statement from the auction house, which assigned the painting a presale estimate of around $80 million, a bar that was not just cleared but trounced by bidders.
As Artnet News’s Katya Kazakina wrote, the winning bid came from Patti Wong, formerly of Sotheby’s, who bought the work on behalf of an anonymous client based in Hong Kong.
Other auction highlights from June include Chen Jiru’s Yunyan Xiao Temple Map at Shanghai Jiahe Auction Co., which far exceeded the presale estimate of CNY 25 million to CNY 35 million ($3.5 million to $4.9 million) and sold for CNY 59.2 million ($8.2 million); and Qi Baishi’s Book of Flower and Vegetables and Pests, also at Shanghai’s Jiahe Auction Co., which was estimated to sell for CNY 15 million to CNY 25 million ($2.1 million to $3.5 million) and fetched a staggering CNY 55.2 million ($7.7 million).
Below, see the full list of the most expensive works sold at auction around the world last month.
1. Gustav Klimt, Dame mit Fächer (Lady with a Fan) (1917–18)
Estimate: $80 million
Final Price: €85.3 million ($108.4 million)
Where & When: Sotheby’s London, June 27, 2023
2. Dong Qichang et al, Resounding through the Mountains: Landscapes and Calligraphy by ‘Hua Zhong Jiu You’ (The Nine Friends in Painting) Album of 108 Leaves
Estimate: Undisclosed
Final Price: HK$ 191 million ($24.4 million)
Where & When: China Guardian (Hong Kong) Auctions Co., Ltd., June 12, 2023
3. Fu Baoshi, Yuntai Mountain Scroll
Estimate: CNY 88 million to CNY 98 million ($12.3 million to $13.7 million)
Final Price: CNY 92 million ($12.9 million)
Where & When: China Guardian Auctions Co., Ltd., June 12, 2023
4. Lucian Freud, Night Interior (1968–70)
Estimate: €8 million to €12 million ($10.2 million to $15.3 million)
Final Price: €9.58 million ($12.2 million)
Where & When: Sotheby’s London, June 27, 2023
5. Cy Twombly, Untitled (1970)
Estimate: €8 million to €12 million ($10.2 million to $15.3 million)
Final Price: €8.9 million ($11.4 million)
Where & When: Sotheby’s London, June 27, 2023
6. Wu Guanzhong, Harvest
Estimate: CNY 68 million to CNY 88 million ($9.5 million to $12.1 million)
Final Price: CNY 78.2 million ($10.9 million)
Where & When: China Guardian Auctions Co., Ltd., June 12, 2023
7. Paul Signac, Calanque des Canoubiers (Pointe de Bamer), Saint-Tropez (1896)
Estimate: €5.5 million to €8 million ($6.9 million to $10.1 million)
Final Price: €8 million ($10.1 million)
Where & When: Christie’s London, June 28, 2023
8. Zhang Jizhi, Regular Script Volume
Estimate: CNY 60 million to CNY 80 million ($8.4 million to $11.2 million)
Final Price: CNY 69 million ($9.7 million)
Where & When: China Guardian Auctions Co., Ltd., June 12, 2023
9. Zhang Daqian, Evening Color (1970)
Estimate: Undisclosed
Final Price: CNY 62.1 million ($8.8 million)
Where & When: Holly’s International Auctions Co., Ltd., June 4, 2023
10. Chen Jiru, Yunyan Xiao Temple Map
Estimate: CNY 25 million to CNY 35 million ($3.5 million to $4.9 million)
Final Price: CNY 59.2 million ($8.24 million)
Where & When: Shanghai Jiahe Auction Co., Ltd., June 24, 2023
11. Jean-Michel Basquiat, Untitled (Pablo Picasso) (1984)
Estimate: €4.5 million to €6.5 million ($5.7 million to $8.2 million)
Final Price: €6.5 million ($8.16 million)
Where & When: Christie’s London, June 28, 2023
12. Qi Baishi, Lao She’s Old Collection of Flowers and Insects
Estimate: CNY 48 million to CNY 68 million ($6.7 million to $9.5 million)
Final Price: CNY 55.2 million ($7.7 million)
Where & When: China Guardian Auctions Co., Ltd., June 12, 2023
13. Qi Baishi, Book of Flower and Vegetable Workers and Pests
Estimate: CNY 15 million to CNY 25 million ($2.1 million to $3.5 million)
Final Price: CNY 55.2 million ($7.7 million)
Where & When: Shanghai Jiahe Auction Co., Ltd., June 24, 2023
14. Frank Auerbach, Mornington Crescent (1969)
Estimate: €3.5 million to €4.5 million ($4.5 million to $5.7 million)
Final Price: €5.6 million ($7.1 million)
Where & When: Sotheby’s London, June 27, 2023
15. Alberto Giacometti, Buste de Diego au col roulé (ca. 1951)
Estimate: €4 million to €6 million ($5.1 million to $7.6 million)
Final Price: €5.6 million ($7.09 million)
Where & When: Sotheby’s London, June 27, 2023