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(Redirected from Sotheby)
'Sotheby's' () is the world's oldest international auction house in continuous operation. Its predecessor, Baker's, was founded in London, England on 11 March 1744 when Samuel Baker presided over the disposal of "several hundred scarce and valuable" books from the library of a certain Rt. Hon. Sir John Stanley. This disposal however was not by means of auction and as Frank Herrmann and Brian Learmount observe, the business did not seek to auction fine arts in general until much later, their first major success in this field being the sale of a Frans Hals painting for 9,000 guineas as late as 1913. The current business dates back to 1804 when two of the partners of the original business (Messrs Leigh and Sotheby) left to set up their own book dealership.
Today, the firm has an annual turnover of approximately US $3 bn, and offices on London's New Bond Street and Manhattan's York Avenue. This powerful position has been achieved through natural growth, acquisitions (most notably the 1964 purchase of the United States' largest auctioneer of fine art, Parke-Bernet), and smart management during the cyclical "art recessions" of the past century. Sotheby's New York completed renovations on its York Avenue headquarters in 2001 adding the unique capability to store works on the same premises as the specialist departments, galleries, and auction spaces. Christie's New York still employs an off-site storage facility for its Rockefeller Center offices. Sotheby's New York's offices are also unique in that they house Aulden Cellars (an in-house wine cellar) and the former Bid (an American Contemporary restaurant and later American bistro), which despite promising reviews closed without high enough attendance.
The company was purchased in 1983 by US millionaire A. Alfred Taubman, who took it public in 1988.
Sotheby's has an intense rivalry with Christie's for the position of the world's preeminent fine art auctioneer, a title of much subjectivity. In August of 2004 Sotheby's brought its innovative SAP system online. Christie's is believed to be following suit late in 2007. In January of 2007 Sotheby's adopted a higher buyer's premium policy, once again to be copied by Christie's. Sotheby's recently augmented its web services to focus more intensely on what its clients desired - in the form of MySotheby's - allowing them to track lots and create "wishlists" that could be automatically updated as new works became available. In May 2007, Sotheby's opened an office in Moscow in response to rapidly growing interest among Russian buyers in the international art market[1].
In February 2000, Alfred Taubman and Diana (Dede) Brooks, the CEO of the company, stepped down amidst a scandal. The Federal Bureau of Investigation had been investigating auction practices in which it was revealed that collusion involving commission fixing between Christie's and Sotheby's was occurring.
In October 2000, Brooks admitted her guilt in hopes of receiving a reduced sentence, implicating Taubman.
In December 2001, jurors in a high profile New York City courtroom found Taubman guilty of conspiracy. He served one year and one day in prison, while Brooks received a six-month home confinement and a penalty of $350,000. No staff from Christie's were charged.
Sotheby's is distinguished by a number of world records for auctioned works of art.
On May 22, 2002, Norman Rockwell's painting of Rosie the Riveter was sold for $4,959,500.
Sotheby's holds the world record for most expensive painting and work of art ever sold at auction with (Picasso's Garçon à la pipe, $104 million).
Contrary to popular belief Gustav Klimt's 1907 portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I was sold for a reported US $135 million privately - not at auction - in June 2006. Furthermore, its price has not been officially confirmed.
On 3 May 2006, Sotheby's auctioned Picasso's portrait ''Dora Maar with Cat'' which was sold for $95 million to an undisclosed purchaser, becoming the second most expensive artwork ever sold at auction.
On June 7, 2007, a Roman era bronze sculpture of "Artemis and the Stag" was sold at Sotheby's by the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York for $25.5 million, by far exceeding its estimates and setting the new record as the most expensive sculpture as well as work from antiquity ever sold at auction.
Sotheby's also holds the world record for most expensive piece of Contemporary art ever sold at auction with Mark Rothko's quintessential 1950 White Center (Yellow, Pink and Lavender on Rose) which grossed $72.8 million in May 2007 and was famously offered by David Rockefeller, Sr. as well as the most expensive work sold at auction by a living artist with Damien Hirst's "Lullaby Spring" pill cabinet, which grossed roughly $19,300,000 in a June 2007 London sale.
1. Artinfo.com, Sotheby's Auction House Opens Moscow Office, May 24, 2007 [1]
★ Christopher Mason, ''The Art of the Steal'', 2004. Putnam. ISBN 0-399-15093-5
★ Peter Watson, "Sotheby's: The Inside Story", 1998. Random House. ISBN 978-0679414032
★ Sotheby's official website
★ Sotheby's Impressionist Sale Totals $239m, Tops Low Estimate
★ IR ON THE NET: Going once, twice... delisted!
★ Sotheby's Group on Facebook
'Sotheby's' () is the world's oldest international auction house in continuous operation. Its predecessor, Baker's, was founded in London, England on 11 March 1744 when Samuel Baker presided over the disposal of "several hundred scarce and valuable" books from the library of a certain Rt. Hon. Sir John Stanley. This disposal however was not by means of auction and as Frank Herrmann and Brian Learmount observe, the business did not seek to auction fine arts in general until much later, their first major success in this field being the sale of a Frans Hals painting for 9,000 guineas as late as 1913. The current business dates back to 1804 when two of the partners of the original business (Messrs Leigh and Sotheby) left to set up their own book dealership.
Today, the firm has an annual turnover of approximately US $3 bn, and offices on London's New Bond Street and Manhattan's York Avenue. This powerful position has been achieved through natural growth, acquisitions (most notably the 1964 purchase of the United States' largest auctioneer of fine art, Parke-Bernet), and smart management during the cyclical "art recessions" of the past century. Sotheby's New York completed renovations on its York Avenue headquarters in 2001 adding the unique capability to store works on the same premises as the specialist departments, galleries, and auction spaces. Christie's New York still employs an off-site storage facility for its Rockefeller Center offices. Sotheby's New York's offices are also unique in that they house Aulden Cellars (an in-house wine cellar) and the former Bid (an American Contemporary restaurant and later American bistro), which despite promising reviews closed without high enough attendance.
The company was purchased in 1983 by US millionaire A. Alfred Taubman, who took it public in 1988.
Sotheby's has an intense rivalry with Christie's for the position of the world's preeminent fine art auctioneer, a title of much subjectivity. In August of 2004 Sotheby's brought its innovative SAP system online. Christie's is believed to be following suit late in 2007. In January of 2007 Sotheby's adopted a higher buyer's premium policy, once again to be copied by Christie's. Sotheby's recently augmented its web services to focus more intensely on what its clients desired - in the form of MySotheby's - allowing them to track lots and create "wishlists" that could be automatically updated as new works became available. In May 2007, Sotheby's opened an office in Moscow in response to rapidly growing interest among Russian buyers in the international art market[1].
| Contents |
| Price fixing scandal |
| Auctioned artwork |
| Notes |
| Further reading |
| External links |
Price fixing scandal
In February 2000, Alfred Taubman and Diana (Dede) Brooks, the CEO of the company, stepped down amidst a scandal. The Federal Bureau of Investigation had been investigating auction practices in which it was revealed that collusion involving commission fixing between Christie's and Sotheby's was occurring.
In October 2000, Brooks admitted her guilt in hopes of receiving a reduced sentence, implicating Taubman.
In December 2001, jurors in a high profile New York City courtroom found Taubman guilty of conspiracy. He served one year and one day in prison, while Brooks received a six-month home confinement and a penalty of $350,000. No staff from Christie's were charged.
Auctioned artwork
Sotheby's is distinguished by a number of world records for auctioned works of art.
On May 22, 2002, Norman Rockwell's painting of Rosie the Riveter was sold for $4,959,500.
Sotheby's holds the world record for most expensive painting and work of art ever sold at auction with (Picasso's Garçon à la pipe, $104 million).
Contrary to popular belief Gustav Klimt's 1907 portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I was sold for a reported US $135 million privately - not at auction - in June 2006. Furthermore, its price has not been officially confirmed.
On 3 May 2006, Sotheby's auctioned Picasso's portrait ''Dora Maar with Cat'' which was sold for $95 million to an undisclosed purchaser, becoming the second most expensive artwork ever sold at auction.
On June 7, 2007, a Roman era bronze sculpture of "Artemis and the Stag" was sold at Sotheby's by the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York for $25.5 million, by far exceeding its estimates and setting the new record as the most expensive sculpture as well as work from antiquity ever sold at auction.
Sotheby's also holds the world record for most expensive piece of Contemporary art ever sold at auction with Mark Rothko's quintessential 1950 White Center (Yellow, Pink and Lavender on Rose) which grossed $72.8 million in May 2007 and was famously offered by David Rockefeller, Sr. as well as the most expensive work sold at auction by a living artist with Damien Hirst's "Lullaby Spring" pill cabinet, which grossed roughly $19,300,000 in a June 2007 London sale.
Notes
1. Artinfo.com, Sotheby's Auction House Opens Moscow Office, May 24, 2007 [1]
Further reading
★ Christopher Mason, ''The Art of the Steal'', 2004. Putnam. ISBN 0-399-15093-5
★ Peter Watson, "Sotheby's: The Inside Story", 1998. Random House. ISBN 978-0679414032
External links
★ Sotheby's official website
★ Sotheby's Impressionist Sale Totals $239m, Tops Low Estimate
★ IR ON THE NET: Going once, twice... delisted!
★ Sotheby's Group on Facebook
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