Will 2022 be as good? That is the burning question as we face into an uncertain new year where at least the economic forecasts are favourable. In spite of Covid the world of art, antiques and collecting enjoyed a stellar 2021 at home and abroad.
At $7.3 billion (€6.44 billion) and counting, Sotheby’s enjoyed the best ever year in its 277-year history last year. This was driven by strength and depth of demand and an influx of new collectors. A rise in quality works coming to market was met by strong demand from new and existing collectors.
In 2021 a record number of bidders joined sales at Sotheby’s, 44% of them new to the auction house. New technologies have opened up auctions to everyone everywhere and bidders responded to a digital experience that has been seamless.
Sotheby’s reported a record year in Asia, a record year for global sales of modern and contemporary art and a record year for luxury, with watches, wines and spirits, design and books and manuscripts each achieving all-time highs for annual auction totals. Global totals for luxury items reached over $1 billion for the first time.
These sums have been further boosted with new categories like streetwear and NFTs, each delivering a new demographic of collectors. A year ago few of us had heard of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Now they are big business.
Last March the US artist Beeple (aka Mike Winklemann born in 1981) made worldwide headlines when an NFT of his work sold for €63.9 million. No less than 78% of NFT bidders were new to Sotheby’s and half of them were under 40.
A landmark crossover into purchases of physical works has been noted too. Alberto Giacometti’s was bought by Justin Sun, founder of the cryptocurrency platform Tron, for €69.24 million in New York in November. It was from the Macklowe Collection which made €597 million. It was an amazing collection of contemporary art which also included by Willem de Kooning, which made €16.69 million.
At home, we’ve had a historic winter selling season of Irish art. The winter totals for sales at Sotheby’s, de Veres, Bonhams, Whyte’s, Morgan O’Driscoll and James Adam soared past the €12 million mark.
At Whyte’s the most expensively estimated Yeats painting ever to come to auction — at €1.5m-€2m — sold for €1.74 million with fees and VAT.
There is as yet no sign of the frenzy that took hold in 2007 prior to the economic crash, rather it is best described as a market maintaining measured and steady growth.
Among many memorable sales on the home front was Fonsie Mealy’s offering of contents as well as the library at Howth Castle. There was huge international interest in the auction of contents from a home that had been in the same family for 800 years.
A pair of c1738 Irish carved giltwood and gesso side tables, which made €168,000 at Howth over a top estimate of €50,000, was just one of many memorable lots here.
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