Artist Records but Low Total at Sotheby’s Latin American Sale

Courtesy Sotheby's

Mexican artist Rufino Tamayo's mural "America" (1955) sold for $6,802,500 (est. $7–9 million).

Published: November 19, 2008

Rufino Tamayo Cildo Meireles Dr Atl Carlos Cruz-Diez Thomas Somerscales Remedios Varo Pinta 09 Confidently Sets Sail Latin American Sales Show Robust Results

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NEW YORK—As is par for the current course, Sotheby's Latin American art evening sale fell short of expectations last night, bringing in $16,797,875 against a pre-sale estimate of $21.7–29.2 million. The house reported that 45 out of 78 lots found buyer, making for 69.6 percent of lots sold by value.

The star of the night was Mexican artist Rufino Tamayo's mural America, which sold over the phone to a private collector for $6,802,500 (est. $7–9 million). The work, originally commissioned for the Bank of Southwest in Houston in 1955, is one of five murals by the artist commissioned in the U.S. and the only one in private hands.

America set a Sotheby's record for Latin American art; the world record is held by Tamayo's Trovador (The Troubadour), which went for $7.2 million at Christie's this past May.

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Last night's sale also saw records set for artists Remedios Varo, Carlos Cruz-Diez, Cildo Meireles, Thomas Jacques Somerscales, and Dr. Atl (Gerardo Murillo).

The auction continues with a two-session day sale of Latin American art today.

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