CHRISTIE’S AND SOTHEBY’S OVERCOME THE WINDS OF CRISIS WITH “MADE IN ITALY” ART 
If the London auctions dedicated to contemporary art alarmed the art market due to the downturns of Sotheby’s, Phillips de Pury and Christie’s, which altogether had an average of unsold works equal to 50%, at last the economy of sales seems to have heaved a small sigh of relief with the Italian Sales.

The month of September inaugurated a new historical moment, due to the failure of Lehman Brothers Holding Inc., historical society active in financial services. Since then we have witnessed the collapse of world stock markets and observed various consequences for every sector. With a degree of optimism it was hoped that the art market could have maintained its stability, but from the latest auctions it can be inferred that the great cold of the economic crisis is affecting even this sector.

A rarely seen oil portrait of the artist Francis Bacon, painted by his friend Lucian Freud, has been sold for £5.4m. The work, which offers an intimate glimpse into the collaborative friendship of two giants of post-war art, is one of only two oil portraits of Bacon painted by Freud and the last remaining: the second was stolen from an exhibition in Berlin in 1988.
The portrait, estimated to sell for between £5m to £7m at Christie’s auction house in London, was painted in 1956 and shows the artist with a downward gaze. Bacon, who sat knee-to-knee with Freud while he worked on the painting, is said to have “grumbled but sat consistently” during the first six months of sitting, according to Christie’s. It is thought Bacon left suddenly, most likely to pursue his lover, Peter Lacy, in Tangiers.
Although it remained unfinished, art critics agree it offers a snapshot into the working methods of the younger artist at a critical point of his development; Freud had begun to work in a more expansive way, using thicker brushstrokes, liberating the paint and creating a more worked complexion, more seasoned and full of life.

Andy Warhol, Lucio Fontana and Lucian Freud works that sold in three days of London contemporary-art auctions were not enough to raise the weekend total much above a half of presale estimates as dealers and collectors delayed purchases in the worst financial crisis since the Depression.
Sales by Sotheby’s, Christie’s International and Phillips de Pury & Co made a combined 59 million pounds ($102 million), against minimum estimates of 106.2 million pounds, according to Bloomberg calculations. They follow a five-day auction by Sotheby’s in Hong Kong this month that raised HK$1.1 billion ($141.7 million), also about half the presale estimate, as buyers shunned some top lots for being too expensive.
“These are old prices”, said New York dealer Alberto Mugrabi, whose family owns one of the largest Warhol collections, explaining why he let one Warhol work pass at Christie’s last night. “They would have to be readjusted. It can’t be readjusted for every industry in the world and not for the art market”. (Bloomberg)

On 18th October the auction house Phillips de Pury & Co. in London is opening two sessions dedicated to contemporary art, that will end the same day with the last round. A sale that will present author’s pieces, differing from the auctions of contemporary proposed by the other auction houses. Let’s consider Christie’s and Sotheby’s.

Contemporary Photographs held on 13th October 2008 at Christie’s New York venue totalled intakes for 1,020,250 dollars.  An interesting sale whose protagonists were the most emblazoned names of contemporary photography, such as David LaChapelle, Annie Leibovitz, Nan Goldin. Altogether 54 lots, almost all of them very important for their great aesthetic and artistic quality, executed by artists that have been appreciated for a long time in the economic-artistic system.
Among the highlights of the various pieces presented to the public in the saleroom were pictures by great artists who have marked the evolvement of international photography.  Among these we should mention for instance “Untitled (Snake Powder)” by Adam Fuss which, from a pre-sale estimate between 50 and 70 thousand dollars, sold for 50 thousand dollars or “Still Life (Candle)” by Louise Lawler, which from a valuation of 25-35 thousand dollars, sold for 50 thousand dollars.

Auction houses are guaranteeing prices of some top works in this week’s London art sales, which coincide with the worst financial crisis since the Depression.
The sales, which take place at the same time as the Frieze Art Fair, have a total minimum price tag of 107 million pounds ($187 million). Sotheby’s has more than half of its total lot value guaranteed; Christie’s International guarantees 38 percent, meaning both promise fixed prices to vendors whether the art sells or not.
“I’m concerned about the level of guarantees at these auctions,” said London dealer Gerard Faggionato. “I just can’t see people wanting to spend 12 million pounds on a work of art at the moment.”
The auctions starting Oct. 17 pose additional risks to auction houses as banks are bailed out and economic gloom prevails. A survey of U.K. valuers said the Damien Hirst sale last month might have marked the top of the art market.
“Everything appears to be on hold at the moment,” said the London-based art adviser Tania Buckrell Pos, who represents high- net-worth clients in both the developed and emerging economies. “Everyone has a budget, even if they’re a billionaire. These people know when to be prudent. At this time, some of my clients are balancing the decision to buy art against other assets.”
In June, Buckrell Pos paid a record 40.9 million pounds with fees at Christie’s in London for Monet’s 1919 painting “Le Bassin aux Nympheas.” (Bloomberg)