AO Art Observed™

Rubens’ The Apotheosis of James I - via the TimesUK

Before deadline, Tate raises £5.7m to keep Flemish master Paul Rubens sketch The Apotheosis of James I [GuardianUK]
The Queen’s composer Sir Peter Maxwell Davies declared Damien Hirst’s art to be “bejewelled trinkets” [TimesUK]
Takashi Murakami’s bi-annual Geisai Fair, an upstart artist free for all, drew 1,176 applicants [TheArtNewspaper]
A weighty review of Louise Bourgeois’s art as: “a comprehensive assault on my sense of wellbeing” [GuardianUK]
An insightful summary of where the art market is headed [Wall Street Journal]
With his show at the Serpentine, Gerhard Richter interviewed [The National via ArtMarketMonitor]

A silica gel sculpture “Communication” by Cang Xn in the new Saatchi Gallery via Reuters

One of the most influential art collectors, Charles Saatchi, who years ago jump started the careers of the Young British Artists such as Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin, has opened his new gallery in Chelsea in Central, London.  The neoclassical former military barracks from 1801 known as the Duke of York Headquarters building is the now home to Saatchi’s gallery and his opening exhibit called “The Revolution Continues: New Art From China.”  Within the space, a standard “white cube” internal architecture, the inaugural group show features works of art from the most of the top contemporary Chinese artists.  Duke of York Headquarters buildings provides an impressive 70,000 square feet of space of gallery space, and in its past life was the military headquarters and barracks for the Duke’s soldiers.

Also notable is that the new Saatchi Gallery, a huge space that compares with City or National arts spaces in its scope and quality of offerings, is entirely free, due to a corporate sponsorship by Phillips de Pury & Company, which only this week was purchased by the Mercury Group of Russia, as reported by Art Observed yesterday here.

Saatchi Gallery Website
Saatchi Gallery Opens at Duke of York’s HQ Building, Chelsea [Artdaily]
Saatchi leads Chinese revolution with video here, and more video here [BBC]
Classical frame for Saatchi’s brand-new look [Financial Times]
Art guru Saatchi back with new gallery, China show [Reuters]
Saatchi’s New London Gallery Hails Britart, Chinese Revolution [Bloomberg]
Charles Saatchi’s old favourites - made in China [TimesUK]
Stuck with Saatchi [ArtReview]
The Revolution continues at the new Saatchi Gallery [TimesUK]
The verdict on Saatchi’s new gallery and Dog chews and Mao [Independent]
Saatchi Gallery: great space, shame about the art and Saatchi gallery: a study in blandness [GuardianUK]
Last scene by Saatchi and Charles Saatchi: Did I say that? and Is it third time lucky for Saatchi gallery? [GuardianUK]
Saatchi Gallery Opening - London [Jean Pigozzi for Colette]

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Sotheby’s (NYSE: BID) 1-year stock chart, via Yahoo! Finance

Sotheby’s (BID) stock declined by 14% on Monday, October 6th, 2008, to close at the lowest levels since July 2005 according to Bloomberg.  By ArtObserved’s calculations, Sotheby’s has lost more than 75% of its value since falling from its October 12th, 2007 high of $57.12 to today’s close of $13.86.  Besides the general buckling of the US Stock markets, Sotheby’s stock’s decline has presumably also been due to concerns about the buoyancy of the art market (as specifically reflected in this past weekend’s Asian art sales by Sotheby’s) which some analysts consider to be overheated and on the verge of a decline, especially in light of the global financial contagion.  Despite the overwhelming success of the landmark Damien Hirst direct to market auction less than a month ago in London (as reported by AO here), overall in the past month, Sotheby’s shares have dropped three times that of Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.

Evidence supporting the decline in the market is mounting: several recent auctions have failed to make the grade, including one recently featuring previously extremely in-demand artwork of Banksy. Some hoped that the continued influx of funds into the art market from collectors in ‘new markets’ such as Russia, China, India and the Persian Gulf, would prop up prices in Western markets and in burgeoning domestic contemporary art scenes. The results of Sotheby’s fall sale of Asian contemporary art however, selling a sector of the market which had previous momentum that seemed relentless, poke holes in that assertion. The auction failed to sell 19 of 47 of its headline lots, including pieces by Subodh Gupta, Zheng Xiaogang, Yue Minjun and Takashi Murakami. “Today’s results aren’t acceptable, they’re very poor. The contemporary Chinese art market has raced ahead too quickly and now people can’t prop it up anymore,” a Taiwanese dealer was quoted as saying in the Wall Street Journal.

Hong Kong tests art buyers’ courage [Financial Times]
Weak Sales for Sotheby’s in Hong Kong [Wall Street Journal]
Sotheby’s Shares Fall Amid Concern About Art Market [Bloomberg]
Top Lots Shunned in Post-Lehman Art Sale at Sotheby’s Hong Kong [Bloomberg]
Chinese contemporary art palls in Sotheby’s HK sale [Reuters]
Pop Goes the Bubble in Chinese & Indian Art [BusinessWeek]
Credit crunch crushes art auction [BBC]
Sotheby’s Sale of Modern and Contemporary Southeast Asian Paintings Brings US$9,165,947 [ArtDaily]
Sotheby’s Website

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Marc Quinn, Siren, 2008, Gold - via Telegraph

Today, The British Museum opened Statuephilia - a show of five major contemporary sculptures by five leading British artists - Damien Hirst, Marc Quinn, Ron Mueck, Antony Gormley, and Noble and Webster. The works are placed separately throughout the museum’s permanent collection in their respective relevant historical contexts. The exhibition includes Siren, Marc Quinn’s life size solid 18 carat gold statue of Kate Moss in a Yoga position which is set in the museum’s Nereid Room among ancient statues of Greek goddesses which was previously covered by AO here.

Images from Statuephilia [Telegraph]
Statuephilia Opens [Art Daily]
Kate Moss: The Muse [Independent]
Marc Quinn Immortalizes Kate Moss [TimesUK]
Solid gold Moss statue revealed [BBC]
Statuephilia at The British Museum Website

More images and links after the jump.
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“Concetto spaziale, La fine di Dio” by Lucio Fontana via Christie’s

Highest-valued sale Christie’s has yet to auction during Frieze Art week will be a Lucio Fontana egg-shaped canvas estimated at $21.8 million [Bloomberg]
LACMA announces $55 million gift directed toward new pavilion amongst other endeavors from POM Wonderful and Fiji water owners [ArtDaily]
Street artist Kaws, now at Emmanuel Perrotin in Miami (as covered by AO here), collaborates on shoes with Marc Jacobs [TheWorldsBestEver]
An interview with Catherine Opie, whose work can now be seen at the Guggenheim [Artforum]
Ukrainian (not Russian, as cited in linked article) steel oligarch Victor Pinchuk announces Director for his new Kiev museum and that he was in fact a major buyer at Hirst’s Sotheby’s auction [ArtInfo]

‘I give you all my money 2008′ by Cathy Wilkes, a finalist at 2008’s Turner Prize, via Guardian

The Turner Prize is exhibiting this year’s finalists starting September 30th at the Tate Britain, in London. Founded in London in 1984 to support the development of contemporary artists under 50 years of age, the prize is widely considered one of the art world’s highest honors. This year’s finalists are Runa Islam, Goshka Macuga, Mark Leckey and Cathy Wilkes–the first time in the prize’s history that three of its four nominees are women. The works shown run the gamut from installation art to film.  Past award recipients have included Wolfgang Tillmans, Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst, Anish Kapoor and Steve McQueen.

Turner Prize page at the Tate Britain
A mannequin on a toilet and dry porridge – it’s the Turner Prize [Independent]
The Turner Prize 2008: who cares who wins? [Telegraph]
Turner Prize Nominees Offer Supermarket Checkouts, Broken China [Bloomberg]
Video: Take a tour of the Turner prize 2008 [Guardian]
Turner Prize 2008: Who’s Who [Guardian]
Dummies and china compete for Turner [Financial Times]
Turner fight begins again [Financial Times]
Nurses and Curses: Adrian Searle on this year’s Turner Prize finalists [Guardian]

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Whitney Expansion plans via Culturegrrl

Whitney hits milestone for expansion approval, but will it be funded? [The New York Sun]
Video of a Jeff Koons-guided tour through his Versailles installation [VernissageTV]
Art and wine, a solid investment in financial turmoil? [The Wealth Report/WSJ]
Large and quiet, a new contemporary art space in Bologna [Times UK]
A monochromatic art book for babies features Hirst and Murakami [Guardian]
$730,000 Renoir, stolen from a Milanese family, is recovered [New York Times]
In related news: Lawyer sentenced who hid $30 million in stolen art, including a Cezanne, for 30 years [The Art Newspaper]

‘Paris, 2008′ by Jonathan Yeo, at The Outsiders show, via Gawker

Damien Hirst, who set a record in a groundbreaking primary market auction, has bought Jonathan Yeo’s ‘Paris, 2008′ piece for an undisclosed amount. ‘Paris, 2008,’ which is on display at the UK Lazarides Gallery’s Outsiders show covered by AO here and currently housed at 282 Bowery.  Though the show was not without other spectacle, this particular collage piece has made the news because it is made entirely of clippings from porn magazines, much like Yeo’s other famous portrait of George W. Bush.

Hirst snaps up Paris Hilton picture [The Press Association]
Hirst buys Paris ‘porn’ portrait [BBC]
AO On Site: The Outsiders [ArtObserved]
Damien Hirst’s primary-market Sotheby’s auction sets records alongside historic financial market collapse [ArtObserved]

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Monkey Queen by Banksy, via Lyon and Turnbull

Despite an initial reluctance to identify the works as his, five pieces confirmed to be made by prolific and secretive graffiti artist Banksy went up for auction in Central London last night on September 27th. However, in a marked departure from other, recent high profile contemporary art auctions by popular artists, this time no records were broken. In fact, the Lyon and Turnbull auction struggled to drum up enough interest to meet the lower end of estimates, with some lots even being withdrawn from the auction altogether. In fact, more than two thirds of lots in the auction remained unsold when it was over (74 of 270 sold). One shocked expert even went as far as calling the auction “a bloodbath,” according to the UK’s Independent. Other artists whose works were auctioned included Kate Moss, Sam Taylor-Wood (who recently split with Jay Jopling, owner of the White Cube gallery), Peter Doherty, and Sean Scully, among others.

A prevalent opinion of art market followers is that the recent auction success on the higher end from artists such as Damien Hirst may be due to an artificial propping up of the sales from direct marketing to new buyers such as Russians and other new found pools of wealth by well oiled marketing machines such as Sotheby’s. However, for the bread and butter lower priced works, there perhaps simply is no escaping that there is less confidence and less money in the system overall.

Banksy Official Website
Lyon and Turnbull: Sale 222 page
Banksy’s artworks fail to shift [BBC News]
Banksy Works Go Unsold; Buyers Stay Away From Urban-Art Auction [Bloomberg]
Banksy Won’t Say if Works for Sale Are His [Gawker]
Art Sale Moss-acre [Independent]

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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]

Sam-Taylor Wood and Jay Jopling via Art Info.

“Young British Artist” couple Jay Jopling and Sam Taylor-Wood are separating after 11 years of marriage. The two have both been a constant force within the British contemporary art world.  Jopling’s White Cube gallery represents famed British artists Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, and the Chapman brothers among an international roster that includes Chuck Close, Andreas Gurksy and Jeff Wall.  Taylor-Wood is a Turner Prize winning artist whose photo and video work has included celebrities Elton John, Jude Law and Benicio Del Toro among others. The artist furthered her fame in 2002 when she created a video portrait of David Beckham sleeping. The announcement follows Jopling in the news alongside Damien Hirst’s record breaking sotheby’s auction last week in which the artist cut Jopling and other dealers out of the selling process. The couple has stated that no other parties were involved in the split which they have described as “amicable.” Jay Jopling and Sam Taylor-Wood have two daughters together.

Jay Jopling and Sam Taylor-Wood separate after 11 years [The Times UK]
Jay Jopling and Sam Taylor-Wood split after 11 years of marriage [Telegraph]
Art’s golden couple Sam Taylor-Wood and Jay Jopling split after 11 years of marriage [Daily Mail]
Jay Jopling and Sam Taylor-Wood Separate After 11 Years [Art Info]

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Daria “Dasha” Zhukova, via Guardian.

More on Roman Abramovich’s Dasha Zhukova, straight from Moscow onto the art scene, and more on her and the Moscow Garage here [Times Online] [Guardian] On Gagosian’s Moscow Chocolate factory, and more on Gagosian in Moscow here [Financial Times] [Art Info]
After the sale, perhaps the most insightful Hirst Sotheby’s auction and art market summary article we’ve found [The Economist]
Christie’s sale in Zurich to auction significant Peter Fischli/David Weiss shown at Tate Modern in 2007 [Art Daily]
With Francis Bacon at the currently at the Tate, a video interview from 1985 [Small Drawings via C-Monster]

Damien Hirst’s “The Golden Calf” / calf, 18 carat gold, glass, gold-plated steel, silicone and formaldehyde solution with Carrara marble plinth / Hammer Price with Buyer’s Premium: £10,345,250 via monstersandcritics

Sotheby’s quotes Damien Hirst as saying “I think the market is bigger than anyone knows. I love art, and this proves I’m not alone.” After much fanfare and controversy, and against the surreal backdrop of a severe financial market collapse led by Lehman Brothers buckling in the largest bankruptcy in US history, “Beautiful Inside My Head Forever” Damien Hirst’s direct-to-the-market auction by Sotheby’s London, was a conclusive success. Perhaps boosted in part by a recently lower British pound, the groundbreaking sale collected $127 million dollars (£70 million) on the first day, and an additional $72.9 million dollars (£40.9 million) on the second day for a grand total just shy of $200 million dollars, beating the previous record for the auction of a collection by a single artist formerly held by Picasso by roughly ten times, which fetched $20 million for an 88-work collection in 1993. Over three sessions, 218 of the 223 lots changed hands with some works sellng for well below their low estimates and others selling for multiples of high estimates.

Sotheby’s Website
Does Hirst auction point to a bull market in art? [WallStreetJournal]
Hirst’s Two Day Auction Raises 115.5 million pounds [Bloomberg]
Hirst auction beats 62 million pound estimate [BBC]
Hirst Auction a Paradigm-Smashing Success [CultureGrrl]
AO News roundup: Damien Hirst’s ‘Beautiful Inside My Head Forever’ auction at Sotheby’s London is happening right now [ArtObserved]
Jopling responds, and Hirst’s Sotheby’s sale bandwagon rolls on amidst the buzz and controversy [ArtObserved]
A disclosure of White Cube’s unsold Damien Hirst inventory before the artist’s controversial September 15th direct sale by Sotheby’s [ArtObserved]

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Damien Hirst poses beside his work of art ‘The Incredible Journey‘ at Sotheby’s in London on Monday, September 8 via Art Daily

Damien Hirst’s Sotheby’s sale, Beautiful Inside My Head Forever, is taking place in London this afternoon and this evening.  The Sotheby’s sale is made up of 223 lots and estimated at over $115 million. There has been a flurry of more recent news and skepticism surrounding this controversial event as the Sotheby’s/Damien Hirst PR machine kicked into full gear. Perhaps most notable in the press buzz was that the globally respected Australian art critic, Robert Hughes, last week referred to Hirst’s artwork in the sale as “absurd” and “tacky commodities.” This press event was notable in that it actually elicited a response from Hirst himself. The Telegraph reports that Hughes has labeled Hirst’s formaldehyde tiger shark, which was sold by Charles Saatchi in 2004 for nearly $10,000,00, as “the world’s most over-rated marine organism.” Additionally, there was buzz in the press of Sotheby’s stock reacting to lower price estimates before the sale. Art Observed will have a roundup of the relevant news stories, a review of the sale, its results and ramifications when the auctions closes in a matter of hours.

Damien Hirst - Beautiful Inside My Head Forever (Evening Sale) [Sotheby’s]

Hirst’s Pricey Zoo Fills Sotheby’s With Bling: Martin Gayford and Sotheby’s Falls on Speculation Hirst’s Sale May Flop and Damien Hirst Sells Pickled Beasts, Pockets Profits: Interview [Bloomberg]

Hughes Denounces Hirst’s Art as “Absurd” and Hirst Hits Back at Hughes [ArtInfo]
Damien Hirst’s art ‘absurd’ and ‘tacky’, says critic Robert Hughes [Telegraph]
Hirst hits back at Aussie critic [Sydney Morning Herald]

Damien Hirst Presents His Works of Art In Historic Sale to be Held at Sotheby’s in London and Upcoming Sotheby’s Auction and Hirst’s Publishing Company, Other Criteria, Share Similar Aim, to Democratize Art [Art Daily]

Form a queue for Damien Hirst’s sale of the century and Commentary: Hirst betting his reputation on this sale and Does Damien Hirst’s auction at Sotheby’s mean the end of the gallery? [Times Online]

Day of the dead: Robert Hughes explains and Hirst’s auction does not demean the art world and Reformed Britart rebel takes time out with £65m sale [Guardian]

Bad Boy Makes Good and Hirst vs. Hughes [TIME]
Damien Hirst goes for broke at Sotheby’s [IHT]
The Gist: Damien Hirst’s ‘Beautiful Inside My Head Forever’ Sale [New York Mag]
The Midas touch that turns the art world lethally cold [Financial Times]
Damien Hirst: “I’m a Punk at Heart” [New York Observer]
Rembrandt? I’m just like him, says Hirst – it’s all about cash [Independent]
Report: Hirst Auction Critical To Market Confidence [NYSun]

Damien Hirst sale at Sotheby’s previously covered by Art Observed here, here, and here [Art Observed]

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Frank Dunphy Damien Hirst’s Manager via D2

On Frank Dunphy the ‘Man behind Damien Hirst’ [Wall Street Journal]
More Damien Hirst pre-sale press here, and more here [TimesUK] and still more here [TIME]
Moscow’s largest collection of Russian art seeks a new building for Modern and Contemporary [Bloomberg]
Japanese film ‘Achilles and the Tortoise’ satirizes the art world [ArtInfo]
Sotheby’s sues buyer to collect commission [NYTimes]
Larry Gagosian is number 38 the New Establishment Top 100 [Vanity Fair]
and Harper’s Bazaar names Tracey Emin “Creative Person of the Year” [Telegraph]

Francois Pinault via the TheLuxeChronicles

In February 2009, works from Francois Pinault’s collection coming to Moscow’s Contemporary Culture Centre “Moscow Garage” [RussiaIC]
Hirst’s $100 million diamond encrusted skull to begin its world tour in … Amsterdam [NYSun]
MoMa selects a Chief Curator of Painting from in-house [NY Times] and, the Guggenheim may soon appoint a new Director from Carnegie Museum [NY Times]
The Jeff Koons-in-Versailles debate continues on [TimesOnline]
Matthew Barney is on Ovation TV, airing Wednesday [OvationTV via C-Monster]
New on the global art scene Roman Abramovich’s girlfriend, Dasha Zhukova, basically summarized [Wall Street Journal]

Charlotte Rampling will star in ‘Boogie Woogie’ via carmenhaid.com

In November of this year ‘Boogie Woogie’ a comedy lampooning the fine art world is set to be released. Boogie Woogie has a strong cast and is directed by the documentary film maker Duncan Ward, who is the husband of art curator Mollie Dent-Brocklehurst. The film is based on a novel published in 2000 and written by Danny Moynihan, who was once curator and is a friend of the artist Damien Hirst. Hirst created a limited-edition cover for the book which featured works by Sarah Lucas, Marc Quinn and Jeff Koons. Additionally, Charles Saatchi was quoted in the jacket comments for the book.

Top-notch cast lined up for art world spoof [Guardian UK]
Boogie Woogie movie detail [IMDB]
Boogie Woogie the novel [Amazon]
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Gold Kate Moss sculpture (left), Kate Moss (Right) via Telegraph

British sculptor Marc Quinn is about to unveil the golden sculpture of celebrity, Kate Moss, 34, as part of the  Statuephilia exhibit at the British Museum.  Entitled Siren, it is reportedly the largest golden sculpture created since ancient Egypt.  However, the ’solid’ gold sculpture is actually hollow, weighing exactly110 pounds (50kgs). Moss’s modern ideal beauty is immortalized and will be on display among statue of ancient goddesses like naked Aphrodite and Venus.  Quinn remarked, “I thought the next thing to do would be to make a sculpture of the person who’s the ideal beauty of the moment, but even Kate Moss doesn’t live up to the image.” At the moment, the British Museum has revealed only a teaser image, therefore only a glimpse of the statue’s face is publicized.  Following the similar theme of his previous Kate Moss-series Sphinx show, held in New York last year, covered by Art Observed, Moss will be captured in a seemingly uncomfortable yogic pose.

Kate Moss gets the golden touch as she’s immortalised in gold [Daily Mail]
Statuephilia - Contemporary Sculptors at the British Museum [Art Daily]
Solid gold statue of Kate Moss unveiled at British Museum [Telegraph]
Kate Moss Joins Gild: Mega-Statue Museum-Bound [E Online]
A model who’s worth her weight in gold (50kg, to be precise) [The Independent]
Marc Quinn’s 18 Carat Gold Kate Moss [The World's Best Ever]
Marc Quinn to Unveil Gold Kate Moss “Sphinx” Sculpture [Supertouch]
The British Museum
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Damien Hirst, Auction: Beautiful Inside My Head Forever / “ANATOMY OF AN ANGEL” - Carrara marble

Last week Jay Jopling, Damien Hirst’s long time dealer in London out of the White Cube gallery, in an email statement, denied that the gallery has a “mountain” of unsold works before a Sotheby’s sale as reported by much of the media, including by Art Observed, over a week ago. Jopling did not directly dispute the number of works held it White Cube’s stock but said: “”The appetite for Damien’s art is such that we never have enough and I’m always keen to have as much work on consignment as possible.” The dialog relates to Damien Hirst’s controversial direct sale of 223 works through Sotheby’s of London on September 15–16.

Hirst’s Dealer Denies `Mountain’ of Unsold Works Before Auction [Bloomberg]
White Cube Says Number of Hirst Works in Stock Is Normal [ArtInfo]
Hirst in the Hamptons [NYSun] Aug 28
Hirst Alert! [ArtInfo] Aug 27
Galleries hit as Damien Hirst tees off [TimesOnlineUK]
D-day for Damien: Is Hirst about to turn the art market on its head or finally come a cropper? [The Independent]
A disclosure of White Cube’s unsold Damien Hirst inventory before the artist’s controversial September 15th direct sale by Sotheby’s [ArtObserved]

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Martin Kppenberger’s Zuerst die Füsse (Feet First)

The Pope condemns late German artist Martin Kippenberger’s crucified frog sculpture [GuardianUK] and more here [NYTimes]
A critique of Olafur Eliasson’s ‘Waterfalls’ as ineffective “shock and awe” public art [NYSun]
Jeff Koons on Night Talk [YouTube via ArtFagCity]
Guggenheim Foundation receives $1 million from National Endowment for the Humanities [ArtForum]
Banksy’s auction-donated $137,000 work to support Ken Livingstone invalidated due to his anonymity [ArtInfo]
Damien Hirst to open his 2nd ‘Other Criteria’ retail shop next to Sotheby’s on New Bond Street, London [Blomberg]