On May 14, an auction of contemporary art at Sotheby’s racked up $293,587,000 in sales.
The record haul was topped by Barnett Newman’s blue hued painting, “Onement VI” (1953), which sold to an anonymous bidder for $43,845,000. The price is the most for a Newman paining, topping “Onement V”, which sold for $22.3 million in 2012.
Four other paintings sold for more than $20 million, including Jackson Pollock’s “Blue Unconscious” (1946).
Gerhard Richter “Domplatz, Mailand” (1968), sold for $37,125,000 – making it the most expensive work ever sold at auction by a living artist.