HERITAGE’S INAUGURAL MODERN & CONTEMPORARY ART AUCTION IN THE BIG APPLE SETS RECORD
ANDY WARHOL’S ENDANGERED Species, 1983 (above), set a new world record when it sold for $725,000 at Heritage’s first modern and contemporary art auction in New York.
“New York’s modern and contemporary art community gave Heritage Auctions a warm welcome,” says Leon Benrimon, Heritage’s New York director of modern and contemporary art. “We put together a strong selection – unique artworks you couldn’t find anywhere else – and it’s clear collectors respected the selection and the overall character of what Heritage can bring to market.”
Robert Motherwell’s Untitled (Ochre with Black Line), 1972-73/1974, sold for $965,000 in its auction debut following more than 40 years in a private collection. Another extraordinary find, Surveillance Camera, 2010, by famed Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei sold for $401,000.
“Ai Weiwei’s works rarely come to auction and we were happy to give it the exposure it deserved,” Benrimon says.
Heritage’s spring Modern & Contemporary Art auction is scheduled for May 2 in New York, followed by a Modern & Contemporary Prints & Multiples auction on May 24 in Dallas.
MAGAZINE WINS AWARD FOR EDITORIAL EXCELLENCE
HERITAGE MAGAZINE FOR the Intelligent Collector has won the Bronze Award for Best Print Magazine at the Pearl Awards in New York City. Winners were picked from nearly 500 entries from leading brands, publishers and agencies worldwide.
“This award for editorial excellence reflects our commitment to providing our readers with quality journalism and photography,” said Editor Hector Cantu.
The Pearl Awards are sponsored by the New York-based Content Council. Entries included publications from IBM, Bank of America, British Airways, FedEx, United Airlines, Marriott, Mercedes-Benz, Microsoft, Fairmont and Wells Fargo.
The magazine earlier was named a 2015 Folio: Eddie Awards finalist in the category of Best Custom Magazine.
PEOPLE
MOYUN NIU has joined Heritage Auctions as consignment director for Asian art in Beverly Hills. She previously worked at I.M. Chait Gallery/Auctioneers, and her professional experience extends from consignment valuation and catalog production to developing and maintaining client relationships and providing specialist advice. Moyun is a USPAP-compliant appraiser.
NIGEL RUSSELL has joined Heritage Auctions as director of photographs in New York. Russel previously worked at as director of the photographs department for Sothebys.com, and at Christie’s New York as a photographs specialist. He was a photography consultant for the National Counsel for Culture, Art & Heritage in Qatar, and worked as photography curator for the Qatar Museums Authority.
EVA VIOLANTE has been named director of fine jewelry at Heritage Auctions in New York. She is a trained gemologist with extensive experience working with diamonds, estate jewelry and timepieces. Her valuation expertise spans a wide range of brands, including Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, Faberge, Patek Phillipe, Rolex and Vacheron Constantine. She is a GIA-licensed diamond and colored-stone grader.
TOURING FRANCE
HERITAGE AUCTIONS Vice President Nick Dawes (left) recently led an educational “Belle Époque” tour through France, visiting the Lalique Museum and factory in Alsace, and public and private collections in Nancy and Paris. Joining him at Maxim’s in Paris were program organizer Gayle Tilles, and fashion designer Pierre Cardin.