Wassily Kandinsky, Studie für Improvisation 8 (1909)  which sold for a record breaking $23,042,500, image courtesy Christie’s
Despite a nor’easter last night in New York, Christie’s had a full house for its Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale, which boasted a sale total of $204, 800,000 with just 48 of 69 lots sold. Â The sales achieved were not always consistent but very high numbers were reached during many bids. Â The value sold by lot was 80%, with most of the works that did sell achieving their high estimate or beyond. Â Head of the Department, Brooke Lampley, declared it a “strong sale” in the post auction press conference.
Sale room at Christie’s, photo by ArtObserved
The major excitement of the sale came with the record-breaking price of $23 million for Kandinsky’s Studie für Improvisation 8  – the highest price ever paid at auction for a work by the artist. The painting is an early figurative example of the artist’s transition to abstraction. (more…)