What to know about the May auctions

The art market is slowing down

It’s almost auction week!! May marks the biggest time in the auction calendar when billions of dollars of art changes hands. People are nervous about the market. After cooling considerably since 2020, predictions state that the auctions won’t be as strong this year. It’s a toss-up of how individual auctions will play out, but the market may start to correct itself after many years of astronomical figures.

While it’s easy to talk about the art market in economic terms (bubble, bursting, etc.), it’s always important to remember that artists are people—and these auctions are stressful for them! A strong trend in the day auctions is just how young the artists are and how new the work is. A good portion are dated 2019-2022.

Contemporary artists with multiple pieces at the upcoming auctions include Jenna Gribbon (1, 2, 3), Ambera Wellmann (here and here), and a lot of Derek Fordjour paintings. This Issy Wood painting has bopped around to four homes in five years. A Christina Quarles painting from her pre-Yale days, bought directly from the artist during her time in New Haven, is up for auction.

Ambera Wellman via Sotheby’s

There are some repeat galleries as well; quite a few artists from Grimm Gallery, for example. One wonders if it’s the same collector flipping multiple works…

I’ll add what piece I would buy if I had 2 million dollars in the comments.

Art Forecast Studio Tour ❤️‍🔥

Paid subscribers get access to a private studio visit at Michael Thompson’s studio next week. Thompson is working towards a two-person presentation at Liste Art Fair (a satellite fair of Art Basel) with Franz Kaka. I’ve mentioned Thompson many times in this newsletter—I have one of his paintings on my mantel! I’m looking forward to seeing the paintings he’s working on before they’re off to Basel.

The studio tour and chat will take place on May 16th at 6:30 PM. We might grab a drink at 915 Dupont after. More details will be sent to paid subscribers on Saturday. So, if you’re interested, upgrade your subscription beforehand! (Note: You can subscribe for a single month if you choose. Subscribers get a plus one.)

Art news since we last talked:

• More auction coverage for you to peruse:

  • 28% of next week's auctions are already presold. That’s $1.25 billion in pre-sale value.

  • A breakdown of the 2024 art market from a Bank of America investment firm.

  • On the connection between primary market sales and the secondary market. Or is there one? Katya Kazakina looks into Sterling Ruby’s primary market prices versus lacklustre auction results.

• The Mona Lisa is moving to the basement of the Louvre. Maybe.

• Four ex-staffers say Nino Mier Gallery underpaid artists. Yikes! But unfortunately, not surprising. Galleries have a history of taking a long time to pay, but this is the first I’ve heard of a gallery skimming off the top and essentially (allegedly) stealing from artists.

• I loved this Reddit thread asking what famous artists’ works you can get for cheap. My favourite answer: “Right now there is a Perrotin x Ebay collab with a lot of fun pieces.” Link.

• A wild conversation between Nicole Eisenman and Bjarne Melgaard about going bankrupt, sex tourism, and the dangers of signing contracts while high on meth.

• R. Crumb has created an exclusive Stormy Daniels t-shirt for Platform. I’m sorry, but I would never wear that…If you buy it, please send me a pic! How much do you think it’ll cost?

R. Crumb via Platform

• Bortolami, James Cohan, Kaufmann Repetto, Anton Kern, Andrew Kreps and Kurimanzutto have bought a school upstate. They’re turning it into a collaborative exhibition space called “Campus” (haha). It opens on June 29. I love this and can’t wait to visit.

• This sincere review of Maurizio Cattelan’s exhibition at Gagosian changed my perspective on the artist’s work, just as you hope a good review will do.

Final Thought:

Cute!

Ok! More soon xx