Long Island Art Dealer Glafira Rosales has been charged with tax fraud and the sale of several millions of dollars in forged art.  Rosales reportedly failed to disclose over $12.5 Million she had learned form the sale of the works, made through the already embattled Knoedler Gallery in New York.  Authorities assert that in many cases, Rosales had acted as a mediator for sales of work, although in some cases she reportedly fabricated the selling client, and kept the sales profits for herself.  “As alleged, Glafira Rosales gave new meaning to the phrase ‘artful dodger’ by avoiding taxes on millions of dollars in income from dealing in fake artworks for fake clients,” Manhattan United States Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement. (more…)

Following the week’s record-setting contemporary art auctions, CNBC analysts weighed in on the current setting of the contemporary art market, criticizing the easy classification of the market as a bubble set to burst, and noting the ongoing theme of art market commentary asserting a link between money laundering and the increasing speculation on the art market. (more…)

Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Hannibal, seized by U.S. authorities during the investigation of Brazilian collector, former banker and convicted embezzler Edemar Cid Ferreira, has cast light on the use of fine art as an outlet for money laundering.  The current market for blue-chip fine art is often conducted with few questions asked, opening the door for an easy disposal of illicitly got income.  “You can have a transaction where the seller is listed as ‘private collection’ and the buyer is listed as ‘private collection,’ ” says Sharon Cohen Levin, chief of the asset forfeiture unit of the United States attorney’s office. “In any other business, no one would be able to get away with this.” (more…)

Financial Times reports on the growing popularity of performance works at major art fairs, helping the traditionally market-centered proceedings to rebrand themselves as cultural events.  The trend is especially notable at this year’s edition of Frieze New York, where nearly every piece covering the fair has reported on Tino Seghal’s Ann Lee, of particular note because the work is sold via oral contract, in which Seghal explains to the buyer how to re-enact the work.  “I’m an expert and even I get tired after seeing 180 booths. But performance can capture viewers’ attention.”  Says Frieze Projects curator Cecilia Alemani. (more…)

Francis Bacon, Study from Portrait of P.L. (1962), courtesy of Sotheby’s

After last week’s busy schedule of fairs (Frieze, Collective Design Fair, Pulse, Nada, Wishmeme, Cutlog, and many more) the contemporary art hub of New York City will serve as the stage for another set of high-profile art sales this week, as Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips host their Evening Post-war and Contemporary Art Sales. Sotheby’s will hold their sale of 64 lots on May 14th, Christie’s on the 15th with 72 lots and Phillips on the 16th with 38 lots, featuring the familiar auctions and price tags for by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Gerhard Richter and Agnes Martin, alongside a number of newcomers and unique pieces that define this month’s evening auctions as a major event.

Gerhard Richter, Domplatz Mailand (1968), courtesy of Sotheby’s (more…)

The Art Newspaper has published an article by Whatever Press on the increasing clout of art fairs worldwide, noting the diverse contemporary art offerings for visitors, bringing galleries from around the world to a single location.  The downside, it notes, is the distracting, overwhelming environment not conducive to experiencing works past a superficial sampling.  “Fairs are great for a scan of the pulse of the moment. One thing they are not is ideal for looking at art.”  Says Maxwell Anderson, the director of the Dallas Museum of Art.

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This month’s upcoming arts auctions are projected to see over $1 Billion in art change hands in the next few weeks, with a number of major works by Gerhard Richter, Barnett Newman and Fernand Léger all expected to command impressive auction prices.  Analysts are pointing to new focuses on artist’s early work, and aggressive price setting by the auction houses as evidence that the market is ripe for sale, which could lead to a number of record-setting transactions. (more…)

Capitalizing on the growing market of private art sales, Sotheby’s Auction House will open a private sales gallery in London, Bloomberg reports.  The move follows the increasing trend of discreet art purchases for blue chip works, avoiding the high-profile spotlight of the auction room.  “It’s very smart. I would do the same,” said the New York-based dealer Christophe van de Weghe. “Sotheby’s will have the same clientele for both their auctions and their gallery sales.” (more…)

Artnet’s Katherine Markley is reporting on the continued growth of the art market for contemporary female artists, focusing in particular on the work of Yayoi Kusama.  Analyzing sales figures for the last several years, Markley points out that Kusama has vastly exceeded the current sales figures for both Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons since 2007, and reframes the question of female artists’ presence in terms of comparison to direct market competitors, in favor of the 100 highest selling works list often cited in news articles and auction reports. (more…)

Last night’s Sotheby’s contemporary art auction in Doha, Qatar closed with the regional record sales total of $15.2 Million, with 9 records set for artists at auction, including the highest price for a living Arabic artist. The top sale of the auction went to Donald Judd’s Untitled (Bernstein 90-01), which sold for $3,525,000 after a long bidding competition.  Lina Lazaar Jameel, Head of Sale and Sotheby’s International Contemporary Art Specialist, said of the auction: “We are thrilled with the results of this evening’s sale, which achieved records for nine artists and set the highest total for a sale of Contemporary Art in the Middle East region. It is extraordinarily gratifying to see the market’s response to the exceptional range of art we sourced for this evening’s carefully curated auction. Interest grew throughout the pre-sale tour of highlights to both Jeddah and Dubai, culminating in tonight’s exciting auction.”  (more…)

The Economist is reporting on the Dallas Art Fair, a young art fair looking to do for the Texan metropolis what Art Basel Miami Beach did for Florida’s South Beach.  Growing from a small 37 exhibitor event in its first year, a number of local and international galleries and institutions, including the Dallas Contemporary, are now participating in what is being billed as Dallas Art Week, showcasing the city’s emergence as a major American arts hub.  “It is the opportunity to reach out to the rest of the cities across America and say that you can participate in this appetite we have for art,” says mayor Mike Rawlings. (more…)

Christie’s has been granted a license to operate without government oversight in mainland China, becoming the first independent auction house in the country.  The agreement comes in the wake of a reported dip in auction sales for the country last year, and some suspect the move comes as a way to introduce higher standards of authentication to the proceedings of auctions in mainland China.  “In recent years we have seen phenomenal developments take place in the global art market, particularly in China, where the market has grown at an unprecedented rate,” said Christie’s CEO Steven P. Murphy. “Today’s announcement further solidifies Christie’s position and commitment in a market which possesses a strong heritage and deep appreciation of art.” (more…)

Study for Portrait of P.L.(1962), the Francis Bacon painting of his lover Peter Lacy, will go on the auction block next month as part of Sotheby’s May 14th Contemporary Art Auction in New York.  Expected to sell between $30 and $40 million, the painting could serve as a test of the art market’s current health.  Bacon’s current record at auction is $86.2 million. (more…)

Jackson Pollock’s No. 19, 1948 will be on the auction block at Christie’s next month, part of the auction house’s May 15th sale of  Contemporary and Post-War Art in New York.  A classic “drip-painting” by the artist, the work last sold at auction for $2.4 million in 1993, and is estimated to sell between $25 and $35 million.  “You can see the circular movement of Pollock’s hand,” Said Worldwide Post-War and Contemporary Art Chairman Brett Gorvy said. “It’s one of those paintings you get lost in.” (more…)

Despite the increasing number of wealthy tech entrepreneurs in the gallery-rich New York neighborhood of Chelsea, The New York Times points out a considerable disconnect between this group and the art market in general that has resulted in a failure to bolster sales.  While a range of issues stand in the way, many gallery owners remain hopeful for cracking this emerging pool of wealth.  “It’s hard to get those guys’ attention,” says art advisor Thea Westreich. “I think they will eventually collect, and collect very heavily and be a part of the community. But I think that’s going to be a hard wall to go through, at least in the short run.” (more…)

Madonna has announced plans to auction off a painting from her personal collection, Fernand Léger’s Trois Femmes à la Table Rouge, and to donate the resulting proceeds education projects for young girls in Afghanistan and Pakistan.  The piece will be auctioned at Sotheby’s in New York on May 7th, and is estimated to sell for $5-7 million. “I have a great passion for art and a great passion for education,’’ Madonna said in a statement. “I cannot accept a world where women or girls are wounded, shot or killed for either going to school or teaching in girls’ schools.’’ (more…)

Domplatz, Mailand, the 1968 photo-realist painting by Gerhard Richter, will be the preeminent highlight of Sotheby’s spring Contemporary Art Evening Auction in New York, carrying an estimated price of $30-40 million.  The sale comes months after the artist’s Abstraktes Bild (809-4) set a new record for his work at auction, and has a history of impressive sales at auction, setting a previous sales high for Richter 15 years ago.  Says Sotheby’s Worldwide Head of Contemporary Art, Tobias Meyer: “The work represents the pinnacle of Richter’s technical achievement and its scale, power and visual impact rivals his celebrated abstract works. This is the work the market has been waiting for and its sale is certain to be an historic event.”  (more…)

Gallerist Jérôme de Noirmont, who abruptly shuttered his Paris Gallery on March 23rd, has sat down with ArtInfo to talk about the gallery’s closing, the state of the global art market, and his plans for the future.  “It’s kind of like we’re going from ready-to-wear to haute couture. We’re getting our freedom back. I believe in art, in creativity, and what it can do for society.”
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Artspace has announced that is in the process of acquiring VIP Art, another online art sales site run by gallerists James and Jane Cohan.  The move broadens Artspace’s number of collectors to well over two hundred thousand, and its list of gallery collaborators to over 200.  “As we augment our gallery presence, we augment our insight into how best to serve galleries and collectors.”  Says Artspace founder Christopher Vroom.
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A range of new real estate projects worldwide are embracing the intersections of luxury living and artistic communities, using local artistic cultures to bolster the property offerings of new developments.  Tying creative culture closely with high-value properties, developers and real estate agents are using the creative spirit of their property locations to lure interested buyers. “(These developments) encourage buyers to truly invest in an area and not buy and sell simply to make money.”  Said Argentinian developer Alan Faena.
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Arts critic Jerry Saltz comments on the diminishing role of the gallery show in the contemporary arts environment, noting the effects of increased focus on international fairs, auctions and biennials, and questioning the effects of this shift on the arts community of New York City.  “Fewer ideas are being exchanged, fewer aesthetic arguments initiated. I can’t turn to the woman next to me and ask what she thinks, because there’s nobody there.”  He says. (more…)

Dealer and gallerist Nicole Klagsbrun has announced that she will close her gallery after 30 years of operation, and will focus on smaller shows and artist representation.“I’m not sick and I’m not broke. I just don’t want the gallery system anymore,” Klagsbrun said. “The old school way was to be close to the artists and to the studios. Nowadays, it’s run like a corporation. After 30 years, this is not what I aspire to do. It is uninteresting.” (more…)

William Ruprecht, the Chief Executive for Sotheby’s, saw a 10 percent decrease in pay last year, taking home $6.3 million, after the auction house saw a 37% drop in profits.  Sotheby’s took home a final profit of $108.3 million in 2012, while auction sales dropped 10% to $3.8 billion and its stock price rose 17% in 2012. (more…)

Sotheby’s is currently facing a lawsuit from a past customer, who discovered that a work he had purchased through the auction house was reportedly once owned by Herman Goering, the Nazi leader recognized as the founder of the Gestapo.  The piece, an 18th century painting by Louis-Michel van Loo, was sold in 2004, but was unable to be resold when questions arose about how Goering acquired the piece.  The plaintiff, Steven Brooks, claims that Sotheby’s sold the work fraudulently, knowing about its questionable origins, as well as knowing that the work would be difficult to resell. (more…)