Sotheby’s latest auction resembles more of a gameshow than clients are used to. Indeed, the use of a “multicamera global livestream” makes even the most complex of Zoom calls resemble a walk in the park.
For auctioneer Oliver Barker, this new style of auction saw him take bids in an entirely empty room, something to which even the most seasoned auctioneer will not be accustomed. Yet Barker took this brave new world entirely in his stride, commentating: “This is what we like: the ping-pong between New York and Hong Kong. We see them on the split screens in perfect clarity.”
The 74-lot auction was a replacement for the May evening sales in New York which had been postponed thanks to the pandemic. According to The New York Times, Sotheby’s was able to use “the latest technology to try breathing life back into the pandemic-numbed top end of the international art market.”
The online sale was more fruitful than anticipated. A Francis Bacon triptych led the way, and five more works were sold for over $10 million. It is believed that at least eight new artist’s records were set.
For Wendy Cromwell, a New York based art adviser: “Sales are down across the board, but there’s an incredible amount of wealth chasing the rarest of the rarest,” she continues: “There’s a real disconnect between who’s hurting and who isn’t. There’s so much pent-up demand.”
However, the final total of $ 363.2 million was just over half of the total from last May. The art market, it seems, is not in full health quite yet.
