Photo by Sarah Douglas

"Black Athlete" (1982) by Jean-Michel Basquiat, one of few standout artists at recent auctions, is available for $5.5 million at Van de Weghe's booth.

Photo by Sarah Douglas

Switzerland's Galerie Gmurzynska is offering Pablo Picasso's "Fillette a Cheval" (Boy Leading a Horse) (1905/06) for $6 million.

Damien Hirst Robert Mangold Pablo Picasso Roy Lichtenstein Jean-Michel Basquiat David Hockney Robert Motherwell Joseph Cornell

Send a letter to the Editor

Save to Del.icio.us Digg this

Van de Weghe is also confident about Damien Hirst, despite concerns by some that his market may have softened after his record-breaking sale at Sotheby’s London in September. (In November, a Hirst painting of four skulls, estimated at $3–4 million, failed to sell at Phillips de Pury & Co., with bidding dying at $1.8 million.) The dealer believes that with Hirst you have to pay attention to the quality of each individual piece, and he has brought several to Miami: a 2003 large butterfly painting with a jewel-like blue background, priced at $1.2 million; a 2005 spin painting, for $650,000; and a cabinet filled with cigarette butts, which had not yet been priced. “I believe Hirst is one of the most important artists of the last 15 years,” he says.  

As for the general issue of pricing in the wake of the recent auctions, Van de Weghe says, “I adjust pricing, and I also put myself in the buyer’s shoes and try to get the best possible price. My job as a middleman is to negotiate with the seller.” Which must be tough these days.

The Danger of Success
When it comes to artists whose work has recently debuted at auction or who have recently been vaulted to blue-chip status, dealers at the fair have had some tough decisions to make. Displayed prominently outside New York dealer Jack Shainman’s booth is a large 2007 piece by Ghanian artist El Anatsui that characteristically weaves discarded bits of metal into a tapestry. It is priced at $400,000. In October, a 2006 piece by the artist that Sotheby's made the cover lot for its contemporary sale during the Frieze Art Fair sold for a record £349,250 ($610,363 at the time), though its estimate of £180–250,000 was well above the artist’s primary market prices. Shainman was relieved that the piece did well, but says the auction houses have been “irresponsible” in the manner in which they've estimated artists' works: A strong result like the one at Sotheby's could bring more pieces to the block, flooding and ultimately undermining the artist's market. “It was a mixed blessing,” he says.

Sarah Douglas is Staff Writer at Art+Auction. She blogs at "The Appraisal."