(Red) Auction's Estimate Cut

NEW YORK—Sotheby's cut its estimate by 28 percent for its Feb. 14 charity auction backed by Damien Hirst and Bono, Bloomberg reports. Two months ago, Sotheby's had said the (Red) auction would fetch as much as $40 million; now, with a slowing economy dragging down shares, the house estimates its sale will raise $21 million to $29 million. Oliver Barker, Sotheby's senior specialist for contemporary art in London, said, "A figure had to be given before we knew exactly what the value of the contributions would be." Works by Takashi Murakami, Richard Prince, Andreas Gursky, and other top artists that will be in the sale went on view yesterday at Gagosian in New York.