Adrian Ghenie, Untitled (Darwin), 2014, oil on canvas, sold for €60,000 at Galeria Plan B.
Photo: Courtesy Galeria Plan B.

Sales were in full bloom on Randall’s Island for the second official day of Frieze New York. Glorious weather early on Saturday undoubtedly helped draw crowds to the bespoke Frieze Tent for the third edition even though, immediately inside, the brightness and sweltering heat were driving some fair-goers to linger near the floor vents blasting out much-needed jets of cool air. “I’m melting! I can’t think,” one gallery assistant told me. But it wasn’t stopping fashion icons Calvin Klein and Donna Karan from strolling the aisles. We spotted them browsing the fair offerings together.

Still, many dealers we spoke to seemed very upbeat about their sales by Saturday. Mihai Pop, director of Galeria Plan B in Berlin and Cluj, Romania, had already made sales from his booth, including Romanian artist Adrian Ghenie‘s vibrant oil on canvas Untitled (Darwin) (2014) for €60,000 ($82,550) and one of Navid Nuur‘s canvases, Vitamin D (oils, pills, powders) (2011-2014) for $9,000. Deutsche Bank, the sponsor of the fair, bought for its collection Ciprian Muresan‘s Agnes Martin, 2014, a pencil on paper work, for €15,000 ($20,000)..

Saint Clair Cemin, Rollercoaster (2014).
Image courtesy of the artist and Paul Kasmin Gallery.

Paul Kasmin Gallery sold a new Ivan Navarro, Open Ended, one of his classic neon-and-mirror pieces, as seen in his recent Madison Square Park commission, for $85,000, and Saint Clair Cemin‘s stainless steel sculpture Rollercoaster (2014) for $175,000.

Vanessa Safavi, The Journey (Clam).
Photo: Benjamin Sutton.

At Athens gallery The Breeder, Vanessa Safavi’s The Journey (Clam) had sold by Thursday afternoon (the day of the VIP preview) on an asking price of about $15,000.

Frank Thiel, Perito Moreno #01 (2012/2013).
© Frank Thiel; Courtesy: Sean Kelly, New York.

Sean Kelly Gallery reported strong sales right out of the gate at the VIP preview, including Frank Thiel‘s Perito Moreno #01 (2012-13) for €130,000 ($179,000). Avenida Roja (triptico), a watercolor on paper by Cuban collective Los Carpinteros, sold for €48,000 ($66,000), while Iran do Espírito Santo‘s Crystal Dome, (2014) found a buyer at $55,000. And Antony Gormley‘s cast iron PROP IV (2013) was scooped up for £300,000 ($505,000). An oil on linen by Callum Innes, Untitled Painting No. 16, (2013) found a buyer at £40,000 ($67,000).

Anish Kapoor, Untitled, (Lamu series) (2013).
© the artist; Courtesy, Lisson Gallery, London.

London’s Lisson Gallery sold out of their Anish Kapoor works, including four gouaches (see above), new small sculptures, and a monochrome work, at prices ranging from £35,000 to £350,000 ($59,000 to $590,000). The gallery also sold paintings by artist Carmen Herrera, who turns 99 this month, for prices ranging from $20,000 to $100,000.

Paul McCarthy The Head Of W.P. (2014).
© Paul McCarthy; Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth; Photo: Fredrik Nilsen.

Powerhouse gallery Hauser & Wirth was more than satisfied with the first preview day results. The gallery devoted its booth to a themed show entitled “On the Fabric of the Human Body,” curated by former Swiss Institute director Gianni Jetzer, and featuring work by Rita Ackermann, Louise Bourgeois, Isa Genzken, and Paul McCarthy.

“We had a remarkably good first day at Frieze New York,” said director Iwan Wirth. “The caliber of people in attendance was very, very high and our stand attracted attention not only from collectors from New York, across the US, and internationally, but also museum directors and curators. It was a terrific crowd. We had major sales for each of our artists on view.” All three of the works in by Genzken were sold, as was The Family (2008), a wall of 36 gouaches by Bourgeois; Paul McCarthy’s diptych The Head of W.S. and The Head of W.P. (2014); and several of Rita Ackermann’s recent large “Fire By Days” paintings.

Frieze New York continues through May 12.