The inaugural edition of a new Art Basel fair opened in natural gas-rich Qatar in February with a novel artist-curated format consisting of 87 dealers presenting focused, biennial-style displays by individual artists. The ruling Al Thani family, worth $200bn, toured the fair before it opened and reserved numerous works, leaving dealers to spend the next few days wondering if and when those reserves would convert into sales.
The sale brought in £130.6 million ($175 million) across 54 lots, and auctioneer Oliver Barker was given a white glove at the end, indicating that all the lots had sold—although one work, a 2004 painting by Robert Ryman, was withdrawn before the event started.
Some dealers at Frieze Los Angeles said they sold more in L.A. than they did at Art Basel Miami Beach in December, suggesting that market confidence has continued to strengthen since the end of the last year. The city's art week also saw a record number of satellite events as the appetite for alternative fair models continues to grow.
Gustav Klimt's Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer (1914-16) sold for the second highest price ever realised at auction at Sotheby's in New York on Tuesday. It was the most notable of several big sales in the sold-out (or "white-glove") auction of 24 works from the collection of the late billionaire Leonard Lauder, and has prompted some commentators to declare that the art market has turned a corner following a prolonged downturn.
