Auction houses narrow the number of lots

But this year, there will be no Magritte estimated at €10-15 million, as we saw last year at Sotheby’s - which is a shame as it’s the centenary of Surrealism - nor will there be a golden collection like that of the Titzes. The most expensive collections in October 2024 are expected to fetch no more than €10-15 million. Things are quiet at Drouot, unlike last year when several sales of twentieth- and twenty-first-century art and design were scheduled. It’s true that since 2015, auctions held alongside the now-defunct Foire Internationale d’Art Contemporain (Fiac) have been surging – as operators made the most of this slot to disperse major collections - but the trend has since reversed. “There was far too much supply, and the market was flooded. There was no room left for mid-range sales,” says one market insider. We might also add that the market is not as buoyant as it once was. Yet the top three French auction houses are still in the game. Christie’s is organising a total of four sales, culminating on 17 October with the sale of the Danute and Alain Mallart collection, with a focus on contemporary art and design. The collection includes around one hundred works by Anish Kapoor, Yayoi Kusama, François Morellet, Tom Wesselmann and Marlene Dumas, with an estimated value of between €8 and €12 million. The following day, the auction house will be holding its main sale, “Avant-Garde(s) Including Thinking Italian”, which last year set records with a Miró canvas which went for over €20 million. This year, the standout piece is a 1965 oil on canvas by Zao Wou-Ki, estimated at €4-6 million. Christie’s is also arranging two other sales, one of modern impressionist and contemporary art on 19 October, and “Marc Chagall: Entre Ciel et Terre - œuvres” from the artist’s estate, an online sale from 9 to 22 October (est. €700,000-1m). Sotheby’s is organising three sales. On 17 October, it will be auctioning the personal collection of art publisher Jörg Schellmann, entirely devoted to works by Joseph Beuys. The next day, two sales are planned: “Modernités” and “Surrealism & Its Legacy”, both taking place at Sotheby’s new Paris headquarters at 83, rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré. These sales include several collections, including “Memoria”, which features 13 works (6 by Miró, a mobile by Calder, etc.) with an estimate of €5 million, and “Jubilation” (est. €11-15m), which features 6 works by Dubuffet, including a 1947 portrait by Francis Ponge-Jubilation (est. €5-7m). The sale devoted to Surrealism includes Magritte’s L’Incendie, 1947 (est. €3-5m) and James Ensor’s Duel de masques, 1892-96 (est.€1.4-1.8m). Artcurial is also capitalising on the expected influx of collectors to Paris by hosting two sales: The “Selected 20/21” will feature two standout pieces: Don Quichotte, a monumental sculpture by Germaine Richier (€1.8-2.5m) and Derain’s Le Port de Collioure, 1905 (€1.4-2.5m).