AO Art Observed™

Desmond by Jean Michel Basquiat, up for auction at Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary Art Auction, via Christie’s

In addition to selling a rare portrait by Francis Bacon, Christie’s October 19 auction catalogue features a long list of post-war luminaries. Several portraits of Mao and Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol figure prominently among the auction’s offerings. A sculpture by Jeff Koons, as well as pieces by Jean Michel Basquiat, Gerhard Richter, Richard Prince, Anish Kapoor, Willem de Kooning, Lucian Freud and a plethora of other artists account for the rest of the lots. The priciest of 48 lots is expected to be Lucio Fontana’s canvas, Concetto spaziale, la fine di Dio, which should fetch around £12 million pounds ($21.8 million).

Christie’s: Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Sale
Christie’s: Press Release for Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Sale
Fontana work may fetch $21.8 million in Record Christie’s Sale [Bloomberg]
Bacon Portrait Expected to Sell for £7.5 million at Christie’s Auction in October [ArtObserved]

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Catherine Opie via NYTimes

On Catherine Opie, whose exhibition opens at the Guggenheim today [NY Times]
Sotheby’s: Cat painting by 17-year old Damien Hirst is worthless [Guardian]
Auction of purported artist friend-of-Andy Warhol blocked by Warhol foundation due to its never having heard of the man [New York Post]
A review of “After Nature”- an apocalyptic themed exhibition at the New Museum [NYMag]
Accusations of a conflict of Interest concerning François Pinault and Jeff Koons at Versailles exhibition [ArtForum]
A full 1/2 of Gagosian Gallery’s London sales are to Russians [ArtInfo]

Le Grande Julie, Fernand Léger (1945) via Foundation Beyeler

Fondation Beyeler Presents Fernand Léger Retrospective, Paris to New York, at their space in Switzerland through September 7, 2008. On view at the exhibition are over 80 paintings, several works on paper, an original Léger film from 1924 called Ballet mécanique, in addition to approximately 20 pieces by American artists that exemplify some sort of influence from Léger and his work. Exhibition is more than just a retrospective of work completed by Léger; it also focuses on how the artist influenced the American Pop movement by exhibiting work from other well-known artists such as Roy Lichtenstein, Ellsworth Kelly, Kenneth Noland, Robert Rauschenberg, Al Held, Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, James Rosenquist, and Frank Stella, all of which reference Léger’s work in one way or another. Philippe Büttner of Fondation Beyeler is responsible for curating the Retrospective.

Fondation Beyeler Presents Today in Basel Fernand Léger: Paris - New York [ArtDaily]
Fondation Beyeler, Fernand Léger Retrospective, Paris to New York [Beyeler]
Art Exhibitions: Fondation Beyeler [Yucolo]

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Arcangelo Sassolino via Men’s Vogue

Arcangelo Sassolino’s mechanical sculptures: art with highly destructive potential [Men's Vogue]
Bond no9’s perfume tribute to Andy Warhol’s would-be 80th birthday [Art News Blog]
Will a statue of the Queen Mary replace art commissions on Fourth plinth? [Guardian]
The Met lends 28 significant modern sculptures to University of Texas [NYtimes]
Whitney Museum selling five nearby townhouses [CrainsNYBusiness]
The Sovereign, a new European art prize, controversially combines award and auction [Financial Times]

Installation View via Matthew Marks Gallery

Painting: Now and Forever, Part II remains on view through August 15 as a joint exhibition at Matthew Marks Gallery, 522 West 22nd Street and Greene Naftali Gallery, 508 West 26th Street. The show is a reprisal of one held ten years ago, but from a different angle. The artists in the current show are Kai Althoff, Cosima von Bonin, Merlin Carpenter, Mathew Cerletty, Wojciech Fangor, Katharina Fritsch, Gelitin, Isa Genzken, Poul Gernes, Daan van Golden, Jack Goldstein, Rodney Graham, Wade Guyton, Richard Hawkins, Mary Heilmann, Sophie von Hellermann, Charline von Heyl, Ull Hohn, Sergej Jensen, Mike Kelley, Ellsworth Kelly, Karen Kilimnik, Martin Kippenberger, Michael Krebber, William Leavitt, Michel Majerus, Bjarne Melgaard, Laura Owens, Blinky Palermo, Stephen Prina, R.H. Quaytman, Ugo Rondinone, Paul Sharits, Josh Smith, Reena Spaulings, Lily van der Stokker, Atsuko Tanaka, Paul Thek, Anne Truitt, Kelley Walker, Christopher Wool, and Katharina Wulff.

Painting: Now and Forever, Part II [Artcal]
Painting Now and Forever, Part II at Green Naftali [Flavorpill]
Painting: Now and Forever, Part II at Green Naftali and Matthew Marks [Design Boom]
Painting: Now and Forever, Part II, in collaboration with Green Naftali Gallery [Matthew Marks]
Painting: Now and Forever, Part II [Village Voice]

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Andy Warhol’s Muhammed Ali Print via Artinfo

Warhol’s $28m “Athletes” series in Beijing for the Olympics [Macau Art]
Armed thieves steal 15 Antonio Berni works worth $2.2m in Buenos Aires [Art Daily]
New niche for ‘functional sculpture’ or art-as-furniture, among the big art buyers [Independent]
An increase in collectors wanting liquidity in their art by borrowing against it [NYSun]
Western art galleries in Beijing work quickly to cater to new wealthy Asian buyers [Telegraph]
Pretty Ugly at Gavin Brown and Maccarone reviewed the Times, previously covered by AO here [NYTimes]

Red, Andy Warhol, (1978) via Gagosian

Gagosian’s spacious Chelsea gallery presents 13 contemporary artists in ‘Retrospective’: Chris Burden, Marcel Duchamp, Tom Friedman, Piero Golia, Douglas Gordon, Richard Hamilton, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Takashi Murakami, Piotr Uklański, Andy Warhol, Martin Kippenberger, and Ed Ruscha. Keeping in company with several thematic group shows this summer, this one has been assembled by Andisheh Avini, Gagosian curator, and artist.

Press Release [Gagosian]
‘Retrospective’: Been There, Sold That [NYSun]
Some Shows For Escape, Some For Introspection [NYTimes]
View video of the Retrospective group show here [Gagosian]

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Temenos, one of five giant public art works by Anish Kapoor via Guardian

Anish Kapoor’s $30M Public art project in Middlesbrough, UK [Guardian]
$500,000 in Warhols, Lichtensteins stolen from Swedish Museum [Artdaily]
Murakami ceases Cerulean LLC’s resale of sculpture at Christie’s after contract violation [Artinfo]
Noteworthy video of Rauschenberg on his ‘Erased de Kooning Drawing‘ [Seattlepi via C-Monster]
Art title insurance by ARIS offers new and broader protection for collectors [NYSun]
Banksy’s street crew, ‘Pest Control’, certifies authentic works in response to copies [Rawartint]
In response to museum pleas, senate loosens tax deduction rules on art donations [NYTimes]

“Pretty Ugly” at Gavin Brown Enterprise via Art Observed

Art Observed was on site at the opening of “Pretty Ugly” on Thursday, July 10th. The show took place at two neighboring galleries on Greenwich St. in New York: Gavin Brown’s Enterpise and Maccarone.
The show was curated by Alison Gingeras, of the Pinault collection, and featured work from more than 75 artists, including John Currin, Louise Bourgeois, the Chapman Brothers, Paul McCarthy, Takashi Murakami, Alice Neel, Hermann Nitsch, Andy Warhol, Francis Picabia, and Rob Pruitt, just to name a few.

Pretty Ugly: Press Release [Gavin Brown's Enterprise]
Pretty Ugly, Maccarone [Maccarone Gallery]
A Pretty Ugly New York Art Eclipse [Flash Art]
This Week in Art Openings: Totally Rad, Pretty Ugly, and The Shallow Curator [Papermag]
Pretty Ugly [Artlog]

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Starry Night over the Rhone, Van Gogh via NYTimes

‘Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night’ coming to The MOMA [NYTimes]
Details of contract for the Louvre Abu Dhabi revealed [TheArtNewspaper]
In industry executive news: MoMA’s Chief Curator of Paintings and Sculpture says ‘Good-Bye’ [NYSun]
In other executive moves, DIA Art Foundation has a New Director, Philippe Vergne [NYMag]
More executive news: Neil MacGregor, of the British Museum, declines directorship of the Met [TIME]
In page six today: Andy Warhol criticized in memoir by former friend and Ahn Duong, former flame to Julian Schnabel and Simon de Pury, ends her marriage [NYPost]

Marc Jacobs channels Andy Warhol via Interview Magazine

Interview Magazine, founded by Warhol, dedicates this month to Warhol [Interview Magazine]
Bilbao Guggenheim makes a $156M expansion into the countryside, more here [Reuters] [NYTimes]
Tracey Emin’s 1st retrospective will be in Edinburgh [Times Online]
Steve McQueen, an artist working primarily in film, represent Britain at Venice Biennale [Guardian]
A major Goya was in the end painted by his pupil [Independent]
Victor Pinchuk and Carlos Slim Helu newly make Top 10 of top 200 art collectors [ArtNews]

Naked Portrait with Reflection, Lucian Freud (1980) via Artinfo

Christie’s held its Postwar and Contemporary Evening sale on Monday, June 30th, setting new records and selling 83% of the lots. The four largest sales came from Jeff Koons, Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, and Andy Warhol. Other artists who were featured in the finely curated sale were Mark Rothko, Gerhard Richter, and Gilbert and George just to name a few. Out of the 48 lots that sold, 30 of them made over $1 million, and the total sale raised $172 million. This is Christie’s best result for a post-war and contemporary art sale in Europe.
Bacon Self-Portraits Fetch $34.5 Million at London Art Auction [Bloomberg]
Koons sculpture highlights record-breaking art sale [APF]
Koons record as London art sales draw to close [Reuters]
Christie’s London Bests Own Contemporary Record [Artinfo]
Record price for Koons sculpture [BBC]
Christie’s Post War and Contemporary Art Sale [Christie's]
Bacon Triptych Sells for $34.4 Million in London [NYTimes]
Dead Artists Breathe Life Into Auctions [Wall Street Journal]
Koons’s ‘Balloon Flower’ sits in St. James Square before sale at Christie’s June 30th [Art Observed]

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Study for Head of George Dyer, Francis Bacon (1967) via NYTimes

Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Sale in London took place yesterday on July 1st and brought in an encouraging total of $188.8 million.  Francis Bacon’s painting of the profile of his lover and companion, George Dyer, was a highlight of the auction. This intimate portrait based on a photograph by John Deakin, was originally predicted to collect $15.5 million, but sold at a much higher $27.4 million to an anonymous collector. Although the sellers of the Bacon painting were kept anonymous, the New York Tims reported that experts speculate that it was sold by Ian and Mercedes Stouker, London Philanthropists.  Other impressive results of the sale achieved records for 11 different artists, and included the high profile sale of a Basquiat painting from seller U2, and an Andy Warhol from seller John McEnroe. The sold-out collection from the German industrialist, Walther Lauffs, which included work from Yves Klein, was another highlight of the show.

Sotheby’s July 2008 Contemporary Art Evening Sale Triumphs [Artdaily]
U2’s Jean-Michel Basquiat work on Sotheby’s block for $17.7M [Art Observed]
Bacon Stars, 10 Records Set at Sotheby’s; U2 Sell Art [Bloomberg]
Anish Kapoor sculpture attracts $3.87 mn at Sotheby’s sale [Economic Times]
Ten Works Set Records at Sotheby’s Contemporary Auctions [NYSun]
Sotheby’s contemporary art sale reaches £94.7 million [International Herald Tribune]
Contemporary Art Evening Auction Results [Sotheby's]
Bacon Is Again a Top Draw at Auction [NYTimes]

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Chant 2, Bridget Riley (1967) via Sotheby’s

Sotheby’s is holding its Contemporary Art Evening Auction on Tuesday, July 1st at its New Bond St. location in London. The sale’s highlights include works from Francis Bacon, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Antony Gormley, Damien Hirst, Anish Kapoor, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami, Richard Prince, Gerhard Richter, Bridget Riley, Andy Warhol and a number of other notable contemporary artists. The complete body of works for this sale will be on view at Sotheby’s New Bond St. galleries Monday, June 30 from 9am-7pm and Tuesday, July 1 from 9am-12noon.

Bridget Riley’s piece, Chant 2, a unique color painting which will be in the sale, was part of a show which won the artist the esteemed International Prize for Painting at the 34th Venice Biennale in 1968 .

Estimate: $4,000,000 - $6,000,000 (Pictured above)

London Contemporary Art Evening Auction [Sotheby's]

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Nine Multicolored Marilyns, Andy Warhol (1979-1986) via Phillips

Phillips de Pury & Company is holding it’s Contemporary Art Sale on June 29 and 30. The sale highlights works from Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst, Willem de Kooning, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Paul McCarthy, and many other distinguished contemporary artists.

Phillips Contemporary Art Sale [Phillips]

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Lowman and Colen’s, Wet Pain, at Maccarone via NY mag

A critique of Dan Colen and Nate Lowman at Maccarone [NY mag]
Supreme launches Marilyn Minter skate decks [Supertouch]
Collector/Art in America owner Peter Brant’s supermodel wife editor of Warhol’s Interview [Sassybella]
Antwerp’s low profile art gallery gems [NY Times]
Sotheby’s Previews $30 million of contemporary art in an upscale Russian mall [Bloomberg]
Update: Murakami as a capitalist in Brooklyn [The Economist]

Banksy’s graffiti in London via Supertouch

Banksy’s possibly largest most brazen, work to date [Supertouch]
Update: Murakami’s superflat: “epidemic wanderlust produced by psycho-socio-sexual binarism”[NYObserver]
Update: Rothko kin successfully transfer his remains [NY Times]
“The New York canon” from Acconi to Warhol [New York mag]
Painter Ross Bleckner to write a memoir [Daily news]
Whitney Biennial annex at Henri Bendel window [Artnet]
Centre Pompidou cancels Calder exhibition due to lack of funds [Art NewsPaper]

‘The Battle of Trafalgar, as Seen from the Mizen Starboard Shrouds of the Victory,’

J.M.W. Turner, 1806-8, via Tate

Tate sends 100 Turners to Moscow despite frigid diplomatic relations [ArtForum]
Update: French art market eclipsed by China [Financial Times]
Jasper Johns: Most successful artist ever? [New York Sun]
Russian artist Anna Mikhalchuk disapeared in Berlin [Artdaily]
View of Olafur Eliasson sculpture in Munich [contemporist via C-Monster]
Update: Interview of Whitney chief curator on Biennial’s process [Wall Street Journal]
Warhol’s Upper East Side townhouse for $5.99M  [New York Times]

Jeff Koon’s “Rabbit” 1/3 (1986) via Artinfo.com

Famed art dealer Ileana Sonnabend’s art collection was sold in two private transactions by her children this past week. Valued at nearly $1 billion, Sonnabend’s collection included works by artists such as Rauschenberg, Warhol, Koons, Johns, Lichtenstein and Twombly.

A Colossal Private Sale by the Heirs of a Dealer[The New York Times]
Sonnabend’s Children Part with $600 Million Worth of Art to Pay Off Estate Taxes[Art Forum]
Sonnabend’s Children Sell Most of $900 Million Collection[Bloomberg News]
Sonnabend Works Sold in Private Auction [Art Info]

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Gregory Crewdson via New York Magazine

Gregory Crewdson’s elaborate, freaky-suburban, cinema set works [NYMag]
On the art pilgrimage to Judd’s Marfa, TX [Wall Street Journal]
A Tom Otterness sculpture to Dumbo [New York Sun]
Why Asian nations are bargain hunting Japanese Art [Herald Tribune]
Banksy works headline U.K. regional auction [Bloomberg]
Update: Overview of the Armory Show [Artinfo]
Update: Warhol’s “Ten portraits of Jews of the 20th century” [NYTimes]
Update: Armory sales hold despite economic slowdown [artnewspaper]
An over-the-front-desk look at the “gallerinas” of Chelsea [NYTimes]
C-Monster at the Whitney [Time Magazine]