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☆ Why auction houses are embracing luxury — and celebrity — fashion
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Joan Kennedy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

(CNN) — There’s a lot of talk about luxury’s rising prices, but it’s at auction that fashion is selling for the most eye-popping of sums. Fashion items from the sets of TV, film and even commercials can also garner high prices. Frank Augstein/APWhile selling prices are widely publicized, auction houses maintain something akin to attorney-client privilege when it comes to the identities of their bidders. In fact, much of the archival fashion seen on stars today has passed through auction. “That dress would now sell for $10 million because of that double whammy connection of a celebrity,” said Nolan.

Persons: —, Celine, Joan Didion, Levi’s, Kurt Cobain, Elton, Burberry, ”, Nicole Kidman, Lucy Bishop, Frank Augstein, Bishop, Audrey Hepburn, Diana —, Victoria, they’re, Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian, Michael Jackson’s, Laverne Cox, Jordan Strauss, ’, Shannon Hoey, Hoey, Dior, Elizabeth Debicki, Diana, “, Meg Randell, Leigh Anne Clark —, Valentino, Saint Laurent, Chanel, Andre Leon Talley’s Birkin, Christie’s, Anna Wintour, Clark, Talley, would’ve, Andre Leon Talley's, Meghan McCarthy, Renae Plant, Diana’s, It’s, Carrie Bradshaw, Martin Nolan, Carrie Bradshaw's, Craig Blankenhorn, Barbie, Marilyn Monroe, John F, Kennedy, Nolan, Read Organizations: The, Fashion, CNN, AMC, Albert Museum, York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, Vogue, USA, Plant, City, Julien’s, HBO Locations: London, Dallas, Palm Beach , Florida, California, Paris, Australia

☆ The pre-owned luxury watch market is thriving
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Fawnia Soo Hoo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Granted, the pandemic-induced second hand luxury watch boom peaked back in March 2022, but the market is still going strong, and price levels remain higher than pre-Covid times. “(They’re) a crucial demographic for the growth and evolution of the pre-owned and vintage luxury watch industry,” added Paul Altieri, founder & CEO of multi-brand online luxury marketplace Bob’s Watches. Don't be shy," said Dimepiece's Brynn Wallner of new buyers' potential nerves when it comes to luxury watch stores. How can you tell if a luxury pre-owned watch is the real deal? “Luxury watches of this caliber will go from one generation to the next to the next to the next,” he explained.

☆ For Sale: A Rare Klimt Portrait, Valued at $32 Million. But of Whom?
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Scott Reyburn | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

On Wednesday, an auction house in Europe will put a painting by Gustav Klimt up for sale, with a preauction estimate of at least 30 million euros (about $32 million). Whoever buys it will obtain a painting by an artist whose major works rarely come up for sale, but also a portrait whose subject, provenance and current ownership are either unknown, not public or the subject of debate. The auctioneer selling the painting is not an international heavyweight like Sotheby’s or Christie’s, but im Kinsky, a local house in Vienna whose biggest sale until now was in 2010: $6.1 million, for a painting by Egon Schiele. At a news conference in January announcing the sale of the mysterious Klimt work, Ernst Ploil, the co-chief executive of im Kinsky, said: “All is in the dark. Whenever there is an argument for something, counterarguments arise again and again.”

Persons: Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Klimt, Ernst Ploil, ” Locations: Europe, Vienna

☆ Graham Sutherland’s study for the portrait Winston Churchill hated goes up for auction
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( Caitlin Chatterton | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Churchill is talking about his own portrait, commissioned to celebrate his 80th birthday, as it is unveiled in London’s Westminster Hall in November 1954. This painted study of Churchill by Sutherland, made in preparation of the portrait, is up for auction for the first time. Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for Sotheby'sWhile “The Crown” is not a documentary, it is true that the 80th birthday portrait —described by Churchill as “filthy and malignant” in a letter to his personal doctor — was burned. “(Sutherland) caught him in a much more relaxed, intimate way,” Zlattinger said of the study, a small canvas painted in oils. Graham Sutherland, seen with his-then unfinished but eventually much-maligned portrait of Churchill.

Persons: it’s, ” Winston Churchill, John Lithgow, Graham Sutherland, Stephen Dillane, ”, Churchill, ” Sutherland, “, Judas, Churchill’s, Clementine, Harriet Walter, Sutherland, Tristan Fewings, —, ” Andre Zlattinger, “ He’d, He’d, Churchill —, Alfred Hecht, ” Zlattinger, Hatshepsut of, Baron, Queen Elizabeth I, Robert Blyth ,, Elizabeth “, Queen Victoria, Elizabeth, Ira B, Nadel, ” Blyth, Elizabeth I, Blyth, ” Dr Caroline Rae, Stalin, ” Bryn Sayles, Jacob Epstein, Alexis Schwarzenbach, Queen Elizabeth, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II, Cecil Beaton, Sayles, Gary Oldman’s Organizations: CNN, Hall, Modern, Irish, Sotheby’s New, Royal Museums Greenwich, Art, University College London, Conservative Party Locations: Sotheby’s, Sotheby’s New York, London, Sutherland, Queen, Downing, Suez, Blenheim, Oxford, New York, British, Swiss

☆ Muhammad Ali’s ‘Thrilla in Manila’ trunks poised to sell for $6 million at auction
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Reuters —Muhammad Ali’s white satin boxing trunks from his epic “Thrilla in Manila” bout with rival Joe Frazier went up for auction on Thursday and are expected to sell for upwards of $6 million. Auction house Sotheby’s said the trunks from the October 1975 bout in the Philippines, which was won by Ali and marked a brutal finish to perhaps the greatest trilogy in boxing history, will be up for auction until April 12. According to Sotheby’s, the trunks were auctioned in 1988 from Bundini’s storage locker after his death for around $1,000 and have since made their way through the auction market. Muhammad Ali's signed trunks are on auction until April 12. Ali got revenge when he outpunched Frazier for a unanimous 12-round decision in January 1974, setting the stage for the “Thrilla in Manila” nearly two years later.

Persons: Reuters — Muhammad, Joe Frazier, Sotheby’s, Ali, Ali’s, Drew “ Bundini ” Brown, Muhammad Ali's, Frazier, outpunched Frazier Organizations: Reuters, Manila ” Locations: Manila, Philippines, Philippine

☆ Sherlock Holmes: Original manuscript could fetch $1.2 million at auction
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

By the time they left, Wilde had committed to writing “The Picture of Dorian Gray” and Conan Doyle had agreed to write “The Sign of Four,” one of his most famous Sherlock Holmes stories. Now, Conan Doyle’s letters recounting that fated dinner and his sole handwritten manuscript of “The Sign of Four” are being auctioned by Sotheby’s New York, alongside other literary treasures. The manuscript alone is expected to fetch up to $1.2 million, given its unique significance and status as the most valuable Conan Doyle item ever offered at auction, a Sotheby’s statement said. Courtesy Sotheby'sThe manuscript itself is exceptionally clean, bearing only Stoddart’s edits to Americanize spellings and a few crossed-out words as Conan Doyle himself tweaked his work. All of Conan Doyle’s other surviving manuscripts, most of which reside in museums, similarly show little sign of being edited, Kiffer added.

Persons: Arthur Conan Doyle, Oscar Wilde, J.M Stoddart, Wilde, Dorian Gray ”, Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes, Conan Doyle’s, “, ” Selby Kiffer, they’re, you’re, Kiffer, Doyle, ”, Stoddart, Holmes, Watson, Rodney P, Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby, Scott, Zelda, Vladimir Nabokov, Graham Greene, Vera Organizations: CNN, Langham, Lippincott’s, Sotheby’s Locations: London, American, York, Chicago, New York

☆ Why do we toss coins into fountains?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —All over the world, and for centuries, people have thrown coins into fountains, wishing wells and rivers for good luck. Some fountains collect thousands, or even millions, of dollars worth of coins each year. George Rose/Getty ImagesWhere the money goesSome well-known fountains can collect thousands of dollars in coins each year. According to an NBC report from 2016, the Trevi Fountain accumulated about $1.5 million in coins that year. A spokesperson for the Mall of America in Minneapolis told CNN the fountains collect about $25,000 each year.

Persons: It’s, “, Trevi, Bill Maurer, Maurer, “ It’s, ”, Stefan Krmnicek —, —, Pen Rhys, Ganesha, George Rose, Basil E, ” Maurer Organizations: CNN, UC Irvine, University of California Irvine’s School of Social Sciences, Century Fox, University of Tuebingen, Bellagio, Casino, NBC, Trevi, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, of, Disney Parks Locations: Rome, England’s Northumberland County, England, Turkey, Rome's, Germany, East Asia, Shanghai, Oxford, Las Vegas , Nevada, New York, of America, Minneapolis, America

☆ Art Basel Hong Kong: Collectors return to Asia’s biggest art fair despite cooling market
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Stephy Chung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Hong Kong CNN —Picture Vladimir Putin, Angela Merkel and George W. Bush as 7-year-olds. Noemi Cassanelli/CNNAsia’s largest art fair, which concludes Saturday, has returned to “pre-pandemic scale,” as organizers put it. Hong Kong artist Mak2's installation in the fair's "Encounters" section. A colorful booth by Dvir Gallery, based in Paris, Tel Aviv and Brussels, which participated in the Hong Kong fair for the first time. So while Art Basel is a “very international platform,” Chan said, it still provides the chance to showcase homegrown talent.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Angela Merkel, George W, Bush, Lí, Noemi Cassanelli, Hong, Hong Kong’s, ”, William Leung, fairgoer, “, Ivy Haldeman, François Ghebaly, It’s, it’s, “ It’s, Victoria Miro, Wirth, Mark Bradford, Philip Guston, Ed Clark, ” Keith Tsuji, Willem de Kooning’s, Kooning, Fuyuhiko Takata, Yoko Ono’s, Takata, Fuyuhiko, Louise Delmotte, I’m, ” Takata, fairgoers, Jaume Plensa, Mary Sabbatino, Sabbatino, Mak2, Teppei, Maho Kubota, Alexie, Kantor, Trevor Yeung, Stephen Wong, people’s, Hilda Chan, London’s, ” Chan Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Art Basel, CNN, “, Hauser, Hauser & Wirth, Galerie Lelong, The, Hong, Dvir, Hong Kong, CNN Hong, London’s Tate Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, Hong Kong ., China, New York, Art Basel Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Asia, American, Spanish, York, Paris, Australian, Paris , Tel Aviv, Brussels, Hong

☆ Spanish police bust alleged Banksy forgery ring
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( Christy Choi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Spanish police said they have shut down an alleged forgery ring selling fake Banksy artworks across the US and Europe for up to 1,500 euros ($1,642) a piece. Investigators seized nine artworks during a raid of an apartment in the city of Zaragoza, northern Spain, according to Catalan police. Video Ad Feedback Related video: Banksy shares behind-the-scenes video from Ukraine 00:58 - Source: CNNPolice said they have charged four people with fraud and intellectual property offenses. Investigators said Banksy’s Pest Control organization, the only body able to officially authenticate the artist’s work, has confirmed that pieces linked to the Zaragoza workshop are fake, as are the accompanying certificates. Police became suspicious after noticing that many similar works had become available on the market, the statement added.

Persons: Banksy, ” Organizations: CNN, police, Historical Heritage Unit, CNN Police, Pest Control Locations: Europe, Zaragoza, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, United States, United Kingdom, Ukraine, Pest, British, Bristol, —

☆ See inside Karl Lagerfeld’s many glamorous homes
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Suyin Haynes | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —Fashion writer Patrick Mauriès first met Karl Lagerfeld in 1981, after he quoted the fashion designer in a short book he had written about contemporary fashion and culture. As Lagerfeld became more of a public figure in the 1990s and 2000s, he increasingly sought homes that could act as retreats, said Mauriès. Fotex/Shutterstock/Courtesy Thames & HudsonIn keeping with Lagerfeld’s constant need for change, there is little left of the homes and interiors featured in the book. Georges Kelaïditès/Roger-Viollet/TopFoto/Courtesy Thames & HudsonAlso in his Rue de l’Université residence, Lagerfeld poses in his sitting room for a photo spread published in a German magazine, circa 1972. Horst P Horst/Condé Nast/Shutterstock/Courtesy Thames & HudsonHere, the designer poses for a photo at the work desk in his office space.

Persons: Patrick Mauriès, Karl Lagerfeld, Lagerfeld, Chanel, Mauriès, ”, “ Karl Lagerfeld, Marie Kalt, Lagerfeld’s, l’Université, Pozzo, Borgo, Monte, Ettore Sottsass, Vila Jako, Jacques de Bascher, Swedish Grace, Jacques Schumacher “, “, ” Lagerfeld, Kalt, Michael Graves, Rue de l’Université, Georges Kelaïditès, Roger, Max Scheler, Germain, Horst P Horst, Condé Nast, Hudson Lagerfeld, Villa La Vigie, Schorr, Jacques Schumacher, Jeff Koons, Joana Vasconcelas, François Coquerel, Jerome Galland, Villa Louveciennes Organizations: CNN, Hudson Each, Deco, Memphis Group, ancien, Hudson, Monaco, Rue de Lille, Rue de, de, & Hudson, Saint, Villa La, Hudson Lagerfeld's, Rue des Saints Pères Locations: Europe, Paris, Monte Carlo, Rome, Hamburg, Italian, Swedish, Monte, Sotheby’s, American, Rue, Roquebrune, France, Voisins

☆ In Los Angeles, Even an Art Fair Is Really About the Parties
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-02 | by ( Alyson Krueger | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

“I think Frieze is fantastic,” James Corden said. “I went to the one in London before anyone in L.A. even knew what it was.”It was Tuesday in Los Angeles, and Mr. Corden, the former late-night host who now lives in London, was standing inside the Holmby Hills home of Jimmy Iovine, the co-founder of Interscope Records and the former chief executive of Beats Electronics. About 225 people had gathered for an art auction hosted by Mr. Iovine and Dr. Dre and organized by Sotheby’s. The event was part of a week of art talks, exhibitions and dinners culminating in Frieze Los Angeles, a four-day contemporary art fair held at the Santa Monica airport.

Persons: ” James Corden, “, Corden, Jimmy Iovine, Iovine, Dre Organizations: Interscope Records, Beats Electronics, Sotheby’s, Santa Locations: London, L.A, Los Angeles, Santa Monica

☆ What’s in a Name? For This Rembrandt, a Steep and Rapid Rise in Price.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Colin Moynihan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The dramatic change in value came about only because some experts decided the painting was by Rembrandt. Reattributed to da Vinci, it sold in 2013 for $83 million and then again for $127.5 million. “Adoration,” thought to have been painted around 1628, has at various times in its 400-year life been viewed as a work by Rembrandt. Three years later, it was offered for sale by Sotheby’s as a Rembrandt but went unsold. In 1985, the painting came back on the market, at Christies, and this time it was sold — but only as a work from the “circle” of Rembrandt.

Persons: Rembrandt, Philip IV, Salvator Mundi, Christ, Leonardo da, Reattributed, da, ”, Sotheby’s, Kurt Bauch Organizations: Metropolitan Museum of Art, Christie’s Locations: da Vinci, Christies

☆ How this cult Japanese artist’s eerie paintings foretold our digital malaise
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Christy Choi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —In the land of Hello Kitty, kawaii (“cute”) culture and the Neo-Pop art of 1990s Japan, Tetsuya Ishida was an outlier. An untitled 2004 acrylic and oil painting by late Japanese artist Tetsuya Ishida from the Gagosian retrospective "My Anxious Self." Ishida, who had gone to art school, worked part-time at a print shop and as a night security guard. Many of the 200 or so paintings Ishida completed in his lifetime portray the gloom of becoming a cog in the economic machine. Another painting entitled "Gripe," painted by Ishidia in 1996, portrays a Japanese salaryman with lobster claws for hands.

Persons: kawaii, Tetsuya Ishida, wasn’t, Japan’s “, Gripe, ”, Gulliver, Tetsuya Ishida's, Gagosian, ” Nick Simunovic, “, ” Gagosian, Simunovic, Ishida, ” Simunovic, Gagosian Ishida, Jacky Ho, ‪, Martin Wong, Ishidia, Cecilia Alemani, ” Ishida, Robert McKeever, Tamaki Saito, didn’t, Sharp, Japan's, claustrophobia, Takashi Murakami, Yoshimoto Nara, ” Alemani, Alemani Organizations: CNN, Asia, Art, San Francisco Asian Art Museum, Venice Biennale, Hong Kong, Christie’s Asia, Japan Inc, dehumanization, Gagosian's, Sony Locations: Japan, Japanese, Japan’s, Gagosian, New York, Venice, Sotheby’s, Christie’s, Tokyo, , York

☆ Amina Agueznay: Moroccan artist awarded prestigious contemporary African art prize
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-19 | by ( Callum Sutherland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The Norval Sovereign African Art Prize, designed to elevate the work of contemporary African artists, has found its latest artist to thrust into the spotlight. The Moroccan artist was invited to the ksar as architect Salima Naji was renovating its structure. “It’s a collaboration for African artists to expose their work, position them within the global art landscape and also give them the opportunity to exhibit a representation of contemporary African art,” she said. Agueznay is the third artist to win the prize, following Malian painter Famakan Magassa and South African sculptor Bonolo Kavula. She takes home $35,000 in prize money, and has been awarded an artist residency in London, supported by the Outset Contemporary Art Fund.

Persons: Amina Agueznay, “, ” Agueznay, Ashraf Jamal, Salima Naji, Agueznay, Amina Agueznay Agueznay, it’s, ”, Caroline Greyling, Famakan Magassa, Bonolo Kavula, Sotheby’s, who’s Organizations: CNN, Norval Sovereign African Art, Loft Art, The Norval Foundation, Art, Norval Foundation Learning, Norval Foundation Locations: Moroccan, Morocco, Tissekmoudine, ”, Casablanca, Malian, London, South Africa, Cape Town

NEW YORK (AP) — A collection of sneakers that superstar Michael Jordan wore as he and the Chicago Bulls won six NBA championships has fetched $8 million at auction, setting a new record for game-worn sneakers, Sotheby's said. The six Air Jordan shoes — one apiece from the last games of the 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997 and 1998 championship series — sold Friday. The auction lot included photos of Jordan wearing a single shoe as he celebrated the 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1998 wins. The pair he wore in the second game of the 1998 NBA Finals was sold through Sotheby's last April for $2.2 million, a record for a pair of sneakers. The highest auction price for any Jordan memorabilia was $10.1 million for his jersey from the first game at that series, according to Sotheby's, which sold it 2022.

Persons: Michael Jordan, Sotheby's, Air Jordan, —, Michael Jordan’s, Wachter, Sotheby’s, ”, Jordan, David Stern Organizations: Chicago Bulls, NBA, Air, longtime Bulls, Jordan, Nike, Bulls, Heritage

☆ Michael Jordan’s championship sneakers sell for record $8 million at auction
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Amarachi Orie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Friday’s winning bid for “The Dynasty Collection” reached $8,032,800, setting a new global auction record for game-worn sneakers, according to auction house Sotheby’s. The set consisted of Air Jordan VI (1991), Air Jordan VII (1992), Air Jordan VIII (1993), Air Jordan XI (1996), Air Jordan XII (1997), and Air Jordan XIV (1998). “This set represents the most valuable and significant collection of Air Jordan sneakers ever brought to market,” the auction house said on its website ahead of the auction. An exceptional player, Jordan earned the nickname “Air Jordan” because of his incredible leaping ability and acrobatic maneuvers. The Air Jordan line has been coveted by sneakerheads ever since the ex-Bulls star wore them in his rookie year – with a buoyant resale market for his range.

Persons: Michael Jordan, Friday’s, Air Jordan VI, Jordan VII, Air Jordan VIII, Air Jordan XII, Air Jordan XIV, Air Jordan, Tim Halland, Jordan, Sotheby’s, Jordan XII, Jerome Farve, Jordan ”, sneakerheads, – Organizations: CNN, Basketball, Air, Chicago Bulls, Private American Collector, NBA, Utah Jazz, United Center, ex, Bulls, Nike Air Ships Locations: Halland –, Halland, Chicago , Illinois, New York

LONDON (AP) — A major work by surrealist painter René Magritte that hasn’t been shown in public for a quarter century could fetch 50 million pounds ($64 million) at auction next month. Christie’s auction house announced Saturday that it will offer “L’ami intime” (The Intimate Friend) at a March 7 sale in London marking a century of the surrealist movement in art. The painting includes several of the Belgian artist’s signature motifs, including a bowler-hatted man and fluffy white clouds on a blue sky. Last exhibited publicly in Brussels in 1998, it’s being auctioned for the first time since 1980, and has a pre-sale estimate of between 30 million and 50 million pounds ($38 million and $64 million). Camu said Magritte, who died in 1967, has become the most “in-demand” of all the surrealists.

Persons: René Magritte, hasn’t, Olivier Camu, Magritte, Last, it’s, Andre Breton’s, ” Camu, Camu, Salvador Dali, “ Magritte, —, “, ”, Gilbert Kaplan —, Lena Kaplan Locations: London, Belgian, Brussels, Los Angeles, New York, Hong Kong

☆ 5 Takeaways From the Sotheby’s Art Fraud Trial
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Graham Bowley | Colin Moynihan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Over the course of three weeks, the art world watched as a Russian oligarch pursued a lawsuit in an American court in which he accused Sotheby’s of abetting a fraud. Sotheby’s, he said, was in on it. But after only a few hours of deliberation on Tuesday, the jury found differently, voting unanimously that Sotheby’s had not played a role in any fraud. The dealer, Yves Bouvier, who was not a defendant in the case, said he felt vindicated too. Bouvier has long insisted that he did nothing wrong and that he was always clearly acting as a dealer, free to charge Rybolovlev whatever price the Russian would pay.

Persons: Russian oligarch, Dmitry Rybolovlev, Sotheby’s, Yves Bouvier, Bouvier Locations: Russian, New York, Swiss

☆ Russian billionaire loses Sotheby’s art fraud lawsuit involving ‘Salvator Mundi’
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Oscar Holland | Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Among them was the “Salvator Mundi,” which Bouvier bought for $80 million before quickly selling it on to his then-client for $127.5 million. Speaking to CNN in 2021, Bouvier maintained that he had acted as a dealer, not an art adviser, and was thus entitled to mark up prices. The Russian billionaire lost his lawsuit against auction house Sotheby's yesterday. Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesThe case has been among the highest-profile art fraud disputes in recent years, offering a view into an often-secretive industry where wealthy buyers sometimes don’t know who they are buying from. Rybolovlev was allowed to sue over “Salvator Mundi” even though his ownership had proven unusually profitable.

Persons: oligarch Dmitry Rybolovlev, Rybolovlev, Sotheby’s, Yves Bouvier, “ Salvator Mundi, Leonardo da Vinci, Bouvier, Salvator Mundi, Dmitry Rybolovlev, Daniel Kornstein, Sotheby’s “, ” Sotheby’s, Jesse Furman, Leonardo, Gustav Klimt, Rene Magritte, Amedeo Modigliani, Furman, Pablo Picasso, Auguste Rodin, Henri de Toulouse, Lautrec, ” Organizations: CNN, Forbes, AS Monaco soccer, Bloomberg, Getty Locations: Swiss, New York, Russian, Switzerland, Singapore, Monaco, Hong Kong, Manhattan

The fertilizer titan alleged that the auction house helped a Swiss art dealer cheat him out of over $160 million by quietly imposing huge markups on works that he acquired. In private transactions, Sotheby’s sold Bouvier some works that he then resold to Rybolovlev. Well, not only of money," Rybolovlev said, through a court interpreter on the witness stand. Rybolovlev’s lawyers said Bouvier bought it from Sotheby’s for $83 million, then sold it on to the billionaire a day later for over $127 million. In 2017, Rybolovlev sold it through Christie’s for a historic $450 million and it became the most expensive painting ever sold at auction.

Persons: Sotheby’s, Leonardo, ”, Dmitry Rybolovlev's, he'd, Sotheby's, “ Today’s, Daniel Kornstein, ” Rybolovlev, Picasso, Rodin, Modigliani, Klimt, Magritte, Leonardo da Vinci, Yves Bouvier, Bouvier “, Bouvier, Rybolovlev, it’s, ” Sotheby’s, Sara Shudofsky, Vinci’s, Salvator Mundi, Jesus Christ Organizations: The New York Times Locations: U.S, York, The, Swiss, Sotheby’s

☆ Jury Finds Sotheby’s Did Not Help in Any Fraud of Russian Oligarch
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Graham Bowley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A jury in a civil trial in New York decided in favor of Sotheby’s on Tuesday, rejecting a Russian oligarch’s claim that the auction house had helped a Swiss dealer who he said defrauded him out of tens of millions of dollars in high-end art sales. The oligarch, Dmitry Rybolovlev, had accused Sotheby’s of being in on a plot in which, he said, the dealer Yves Bouvier posed as an art adviser negotiating sales on Rybolovlev’s behalf when, in reality, he was secretly acting as an art dealer, buying works at Sotheby’s before flipping them to his client. In the resales, Bouvier at times increased the prices by tens of millions of dollars. Whatever the dealer did with the art after he bought it was none of the auction house’s business, the Sotheby’s lawyers had argued. If anyone were to blame for buying overpriced art, it was Rybolovlev himself, according to Sotheby’s lawyers, who said the Russian businessman was at fault for not protecting himself against the dealer’s actions.

Persons: Dmitry Rybolovlev, Yves Bouvier, Bouvier, Rybolovlev Locations: New York, Sotheby’s, Swiss, Russian

☆ The best things to experience in Saudi Arabia according to the people who know it
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Selina Julien | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —Closed to tourists until recently, Saudi Arabia is still an unknown quantity for many would-be travelers. Omran is also hopeful visitors will explore destinations across Saudi Arabia. Saudi Tourism Authority“You can’t talk about islands in Saudi Arabia without talking about a new tourist favorite, but a treasured local one, Al Nawras Island,” Saudi professional boxer Ziyad Almaayouf tells CNN. “What I love most about Al Nawras Island, isn’t the island itself, but the waters surrounding it,” he adds. The resort on the Red Sea coast is often promoted as “the Maldives of Saudi Arabia,” offering water sports and cultural experiences.

Persons: Lojain Omran, Omran, ”, Al Balad, Mai Eldib, Hajj, ” Eldib, Jeddah’s, “ It’s, ” Al, Ziyad Almaayouf, ” Ziyad, Ziyad, “, Mishaal Ashemimry, Mishaal, Tamtam, Reem Altamimi, Al Zal, Ba’a, Hatem Alakeel, Authenticite, “ Diriyah, Umluj, ” Tasneem Organizations: CNN, Netflix’s, Saudi Tourism Authority, MISHAAL Aerospace, Abaca, Saudi Locations: Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Netflix’s UAE, Al Balad, Al, Jeddah, Mai, ” Al Nawras, Nawras, Al Nawras, California, “, Unaizah, Riyadh, ”, Souk Al Zal Souk Al Zal, USA Riyadh, Al Zal, Riyadh’s Al Dirah, Los Angeles, Maldives

☆ Step inside Emma Stone’s century-old, sunlit LA home, just listed for $4 million
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Jacqui Palumbo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Emma Stone has just finished playing a morally complicated home-flipper in the first season of “The Curse,” and now the actor is selling her own newly-renovated Los Angeles abode. Ryan Lahiff/Sotheby’s International RealtyStone expanded the vaulted kitchen with eat-in dining. Ryan Lahiff/Sotheby’s International RealtyPops of color and maximalist touches give the home a cheery feeling. Ryan Lahiff/Sotheby’s International RealtyThe bathroom, with a claw foot tub, is full of charm and sunlight. Ryan Lahiff/Sotheby’s International Realty

Persons: Emma Stone, Stone, ”, Eric Lavey, Xavier Collin, Lavey, “ It’s, “, ” Stone, Dave McCary, Ryan Lahiff Organizations: CNN, Image Press Agency, Stone Locations: Los Angeles, Los Angeles , New York, Austin , Texas, —, Arizona, New York, Texas

☆ At Art Fraud Trial, Sotheby’s Is Pressed on Role in Sales to Russian Oligarch
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Graham Bowley | More About Graham Bowley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Valette was the Sotheby’s executive who dealt with Bouvier in the sale of the da Vinci and three other works that are the focus of the case. In each instance, Bouvier bought the works through Sotheby’s and then resold them to Rybolovlev at large markups. Rybolovlev says Bouvier tricked him by pretending to act as his art adviser in the transactions, even pretending to negotiate with phantom third parties when he was actually the owner of the works. He has argued that Valette understood what was going on and helped him. But for Rybolovlev, Valette is central to the argument that Sotheby’s was knowingly part of a scheme to defraud him out of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Persons: Bouvier —, Valette, Bouvier, Vinci, Rybolovlev, Sotheby’s Organizations: Park West Locations: Manhattan, Sotheby’s

His legal team said Bouvier pocketed the sum by buying famous artworks from Sotheby's before selling them to Rybolovlev at marked up prices. In all, Rybolovlev spent about $2 billion on art from 2002 to 2014 as he built a world-class art collection. In his testimony, Rybolovlev blamed murky practices in the blue-chip art world for leaving him damaged financially. When asked by his lawyer why he sued Sotheby's, Rybolovlev said: “So it's not an issue of money. Rybolovlev claims he was purposefully deceived by Bouvier and a London-based executive at Sotheby's as he bought 38 art pieces.

Persons: he'd, Dmitry Rybolovlev, Rybolovlev, Yves Bouvier, “, I'm, ” Rybolovlev, Bouvier, didn't, ”, Sotheby's, it's, Sara Shudofsky, Daniel Kornstein, “ Sotheby’s, Leonardo da Vinci’s, Salvator Mundi, Bouvier's, David Bitton, Yves Klein, Bouvier “, Trump, Vladimir Putin, Kornstein, hasn’t Organizations: Sotheby’s, Sotheby's, Russia Locations: Swiss, Manhattan, London, New York, Singapore , Hong Kong , New York, Monaco, Geneva, Switzerland, Ukraine, Russia

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