September 2021
Anti-ivory campaign turns into global sale of ‘outsider art’
Leonard Joel chairman John Albrecht will auction works from disabled artists around the world as he looks to turn his pioneering anti-horn stance into money for elephants.
Will Rosemary Madigan be the latest female artist to rewrite history?
Smith & Singer is hoping to make the sculptor the latest Australian female artist to be revalued when it auctions her modern nod to Michelangelo.
A Queen’s ransom? $1m Warhols to test hot prints market
A showstopping set of Andy Warhol prints are set to test the limits of the hot market for prints when they headline Menzies sale with hopes of $1 million.
May Gibbs blooms anew as locked down bidders spend up on art
The creator of Snugglepie was among several female artists that wowed Bonhams online only auction of Australian art.
August 2021
Carving out a place in Australia’s design story
The latest female artist to be reassessed is self-taught Australian woodcarver Sonia Farley, as 11 of her works come up at Shapiro’s contemporary design sale.
Tiny gold Buddha goes large at sale of Chinese ornaments
An exquisite collection of rare Chinese gold jewellery and ornaments sold for more than three times its lower estimate at Bonhams.
Pictures by the real Dorian Gray make market debut
Two rare portraits by convict artist Thomas Wainewright, the English dandy and suspected serial killer who was the inspiration for Dorian Gray, are on sale for the first time.
July 2021
Artvisory takes fire over rhino horn sale
Paul Sumner says a blanket ban won’t solve the problem as his new auction house brings three rhino horn artefacts to a market rivals have abandoned.
Banksy print bought for $2600 now has $80k price tag
Limited editions are the preferred medium of some artists who are popular with a younger demographic.
Records fall as buyers rediscover female photographers
Pat Corrigan’s photos from the 1980s to 2000s inspired collectors to set nine records for works from the dynamic but underappreciated period.
Charles Dresser toast rack sets new sales record
An 1878 silver-plated toast rack by Scottish industrial designer Charles Dresser sold for $12,000 in a week of competitive bidding at local auction houses.
June 2021
Pat Corrigan’s photo downsizing operation takes contemporary focus
The former freight boss and inveterate collector’s third sale features classics from the 1980s to 2000s, when contemporary photography was distinctly cool and booming.
Ben Quilty’s savage van painting to test market resolve
Contemporary artist du jour Ben Quilty’s menacing, anthropomorphic mini-van and another two high-priced Banksy prints are the ones to watch at Menzies upcoming sale.
Online art auctions are booming ... except this one
Online art auctions have gone from zero to hero during the past year, but a sale on Sunday has left one vendor less than impressed.
May 2021
‘Interesting timing’: Ray Hughes’ Chinese art lands amid political storm
The late Sydney art dealer Ray Hughes was ahead of a cultural curve on contemporary Chinese art. Now son Evan is selling some of the more politically charged works from his estate.
Banksy print bought for $300 selling for over $100k
As another Smith & Singer specialist exits, one small-time collector is hoping for a tidy return from a print bought at Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art store.
April 2021
Guilty verdict in Melbourne fake art scam
One of the associates of “notorious” Melbourne art dealer Peter Gant has been found guilty of misleading or deceptive conduct in a failed investment scheme that used a cache of fake art as security.
‘There is enormous appetite’: art market revels as more records fall
By anyone’s measure, last week was exceptional for Australia’s secondary art market, with $25.8 million in sales, 16 artist records and a new high for an internet bid.
Records fall as millions spent on paintings, diamond
Three million-dollar paintings, six new auction records and Australia’s first million-dollar diamond were all realised in Sydney on Tuesday night.
Old guard leads as art market gets set for $16m week
Four million-dollar-plus paintings by blue-chip Australian artists headline a big week for a hot art market, with a 25-carat sparkler aiming for seven figures too.