The triple-header auction evening at Christie’s New York brought a mere $162.7 million, despite a $35.1 million Gerhard Richter sale.
The sale was led by a group of paintings from the collection of late dealer Marian Goodman, including Gerhard Richter’s Kerze (Candle), which sold for $35.1 million. Eight Richter works from Goodman’s collection brought in nearly $79 million with fees, making them the clear centerpiece of the evening. Another Richter work, Mohn (Poppy) (1995), sold for $20.1 million after competitive bidding.
The auction also included works from the estate of collector Henry S. McNeil. A 1969 sculpture by Donald Judd emerged as one of the night’s top lots, selling for $12.8 million. Overall, the Minimalist works from McNeil’s collection collectively achieved estimates.
Apart from one unsold Ed Ruscha painting, nearly all major lots found buyers. Works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Cecily Brown, Keith Haring, and Peter Doig also contributed to the final total, though several sold near or below their estimates.
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Dealers and advisers pointed to provenance as a major driver behind the evening’s strongest results. The Goodman collection, in particular, attracted sustained interest from bidders. Observers also noted a shift away from speculative contemporary buying toward established blue-chip names, suggesting a more cautious and selective market climate.
The sale capped off a strong New York auction season across the major houses, following billion-dollar results earlier in the week at Christie’s and solid performances at Sotheby’s and Phillips. While broader economic uncertainty remains, recent auctions suggest that demand for historically significant works remains resilient.
