[loucastel]

sotheby's Contemporary Art Evening Sale 5th feb, have a look at the preview video, this must be the best Lichtenstein I have ever seen, and the work by Koons is superb!!


www.sothebys.com/video/privateview/L09620/index.html

[droow]

Feb 4, 2009 2:30:22 GMT 1 stickee said:

what on earth was that Michael jackson statue ?

it looked like something you would win from the fairground

*edit* watched video with the sound off so it might of explained it more on there, but that thing is life size haha wtf

this koons guy has some crazy work most of it looks like it belongs in Ratners and not Sotherbys

[Guest]

pretty typical for koons work, love it or hate it, its very kitsch.

[Guest]

Feb 4, 2009 3:14:34 GMT 1 stickee said:

Feb 4, 2009 3:01:40 GMT 1 @ronhill said:

pretty typical for koons work, love it or hate it, its very kitsch.

I think a lot of it if you had on display at your house you would have to tell people "its a Koons" and maybe hand them a leaflet about the guy

know what I mean?

I have to do that with most of the art i have at home.

[dkla]

Feb 4, 2009 2:30:22 GMT 1 stickee said:

what on earth was that Michael jackson statue ?

it looked like something you would win from the fairground

*edit* watched video with the sound off so it might of explained it more on there, but that thing is life size haha wtf

this koons guy has some crazy work most of it looks like it belongs in Ratners and not Sotherbys

Considering Jeff Koons is the world's top selling living artist at auction, I find this thread amusing.

[jB]

Feb 4, 2009 3:19:05 GMT 1 @ronhill said:

Feb 4, 2009 3:14:34 GMT 1 stickee said:

I think a lot of it if you had on display at your house you would have to tell people "its a Koons" and maybe hand them a leaflet about the guy

know what I mean?

I have to do that with most of the art i have at home.

well said ron hill, especially in the U.S.

[fatherxmas]

i like the andy warhols in the background..

[pezlow]

I kinda agree with Stickee on this. I've never got koons at all. Sure his work sells for big bucks but beyond that what is it all about? Koons seems to have ridden a wave of hype to get where he is today - the marriage to the italian porn star come politician, the sculpture showing them having sex, the pink panther masterbation fantasy thing. I just don't get it AT ALL.

[loucastel]

C'mon Pez do you really understand all the art you like, sometimes it's just down to an individual image, as for the hype, seems thats the way with most artists these days!!

As for Stickee's comment,

"I think a lot of it if you had on display at your house you would have to tell people "its a Koons" and maybe hand them a leaflet about the guy

know what I mean?"

Even if you handed people a leaflet about your work, they still wouldnt know who you are, at least Koons does a bit more than produce works of some three eyed dude, I wonder how many people understand that!!

[howlinjack]

koons balloon animals are superb.

[corisma]

Feb 4, 2009 5:21:47 GMT 1 @fatherxmas said:

i like the andy warhols in the background..

and there was me thinking they were D-Face's

[pezlow]

Feb 4, 2009 10:26:51 GMT 1 loucastel said:

C'mon Pez do you really understand all the art you like, sometimes it's just down to an individual image, as for the hype, seems thats the way with most artists these days!!

Nope of course not but if you don't understand it and it doesn't do much for you personally then you aren't gonna get it. And with Koons I just don't get it. And while I can see that Koons has very high production values and that the stuff he produces looks nice (including those balloon dogs) that's about as far as I can personally go with it.

Agree about the hype comment but maybe because I don't really get the work the hype just seems more obvious to me than say Banksy or Hirst.

[lee3]

Through 6, everything has sold. I'm surprised the Fontana did not bring in more and gosh you have to wonder if it would have brought in 2 or 3 times that much just 6 months ago.

I'm keeping my eye on lot 13 as that is so beautiful to me.

through 10 everything has sold but many obviosly lowered reserves as the prices without premium in some cases are well below the low estimate.

Through 13, everything has sold. "only" 892k GBP for 3 Warhol Fright Wigs which is $1.3M total. The last 12 inch fright wig at auction that I can remember was a gold one in November '07 which "only" brought in $1.7M. I was sitting in the audience for that one. A red one and an orange one had brought in $2.3 and $2.8M the previous May. So, we've gone from $2.8M for a 12 inch version of this image to $400k which is an 85% erosion in price. This correction which was long overdue is significantly nastier than I expected. I envy the buyer of that lot because they got a steal not that I could afford that anyway. It also means that certain Warhol's have come back in the range that I've been hoping for.

The scary thing is that this is just the beginning and art isn't going to just run away from us. Buyers market for the forseeable future (my guess is 5 years at least) so that is the silver lining.

Sale is over and the Fright Wigs are the only lot that brought in above the high estimate. Shockingly to me, the piece I would have wanted the most in this auction (after the Fright Wigs) if money were no object is the only one that was bought in. How in the world does that Lichtenstein not get $1.8M while that Koons brings in $2.8M? Manipu... well maybe there are a lot of people who just can't resist a wooden scultpure of farm animals at $4 million dollars.

I don't get it.

[elwheel]

Results

www.sothebys.com/app/live/lot/LotResultsDetailList.jsp?event_id=29163&sale_number=L09620&show_lot_name=Y

[hero]

Feb 4, 2009 5:24:09 GMT 1 stickee said:

Feb 4, 2009 4:29:24 GMT 1 dkla said:

Considering Jeff Koons is the world's top selling living artist at auction, I find this thread amusing.

Considering this is a forum based round banksy's work and street art i find your comment amusing!

well, hes already said his piece



H

[loucastel]

I was amazed the Lichtenstein didnt sell, that was one of the best lots in the sale for me, as Lee said the estimates and reserves were a lot more realistic I think, hence virtually all lots sold, still raised over £17 million, which I think in this climate is still pretty good going.
I really dont understand the nagativity towards the Koons stacked animals, I think they would look quite cute in my lounge, lol, if only!!!

[loucastel]

Feb 5, 2009 22:54:14 GMT 1 hero said:

Feb 4, 2009 5:24:09 GMT 1 stickee said:

Considering this is a forum based round banksy's work and street art i find your comment amusing!

well, hes already said his piece



H

At least it's not a problem you will ever have to deal with, ehh hero!!!