Austria's auction market: High up with a view

For the first time in a long time, the Dorotheum in Vienna has revealed its annual turnover.

The house has every reason to be proud: more than 200 million euros is the best result in its history.

Online sales play a part in this, as does the international orientation.

"More than half of our lots come from abroad and also go to foreign bidders," says Martin Böhm, Director of the Dorotheum.

In addition to the branches in Munich and Düsseldorf, a representation was opened in Hamburg in 2022.

Germany and Italy – with representative offices in Milan and Rome – are the auction house's core markets.

In addition to the successful section of the old masters, classical modernism and contemporaries have recently recorded the strongest growth.

Traditionally, the Dorotheum is a multi-department house, most recently selling a 2005 Porsche Carrera GT around 900.

000 euros or a Cartier diamond bracelet for 250,000 euros.

But art makes up the lion's share of the business.

In times of inflation, the acquisition of top works is difficult.

With a “Penitent Magdalene” by Titian, however, the Dorotheum achieved a fantastic result.

One to one and a half million euros were estimated for the painting, which is 115 centimeters high and whose provenance list includes illustrious names such as Queen Christina of Sweden and Duke Philip II of Orléans.

A skirmish between a floor bidder and a telephone bidder drove it to 4.1 million.

"This is the second-best bid for an old master in the German-speaking world," emphasizes Böhm.

Another coup came at the end of November with a “Madonna and Child” by Giovanni Bellini and assistant, new to the market from a European private collection.

Older expert opinions could find out about the autograph of the composition, its comparative work, the "Madonna Contarini",

hangs in Venice's Galleria dell'Accademia, not some.

Freshly restored and scientifically examined, the Jungfrau came up in November with an estimated value of 250,000 to 350,000 euros and was convincing.

The surcharge of 1.1 million quadrupled the estimate.

With 600,000 euros each, Warhol and Fontana took the lead in contemporary art.

In 1974, the pop artist created a striking portrait of the surrealist Man Ray, whose estimate of 300,000 to 500,000 euros was exceeded.

Fontana scratched and pierced a pink "Concetto Spaziale" in 1965, which cashed its lower estimate.

A pumpkin picture by the Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama brought in 380,000 euros (estimate 250,000 to 350,000 euros).

Alfons Walde's paintings of the Alps, which did very well in the Dorotheum, have proven to be reliable investments time and time again.

His summery "Almen und Gletscher" from 1932 and a "Lonely Berghof" from 1935 were not available for less than 420,000 euros each.

The Tyrolean also found good sales at the competitor Kinsky, for example with a farmstead including accessories from 1947 for 300,000 euros.

The Kinsky had a turnover of 27 million euros last year and thus performed better than before the pandemic.

The good overall result is not necessarily evident from the knockdowns: Outliers upwards were rare.

As in the past, modern art had the edge.

A flower still life by Rudolf Wacker from Vorarlberg experienced the highest increase.

His market-fresh "Autumn Bouquet with Brimstone Butterfly" from 1937 was sold at the Christmas auction for 400,000 euros (150,000/200,000).

Marc Chagall's fragrant late work "Fleurs et femmes en Reve" was also well received.

The sheet, estimated at 100,000 to 200,000 euros, changed hands for 330,000 euros.

In November, the Kinsky was able to look forward to the collection auction of the entrepreneur Erna Weidinger, who died in 2021.

The top lot "Equestrian Portrait of the Royal Page Gintowt" by Bernardo Bellotto from 1773 once hung in the Royal Palace of Warsaw.

The painting, measuring 60 by 55 centimetres, tripled its lower estimate with a hammer price of 730,000 euros and became the most successful lot in Kinsky 2022.

The veduta "The Canal Grande to the east with a view of the church Santa Maria della Salute" from Bellotto's circle fetched a good 420,000 euros (150,000/300,000).

For comparison: the highest price in the regular Old Master category was 90,000 euros for a portrait of a gentleman from Rubens' circle (25,000/50,000).

The contemporaries focused almost entirely on domestic art.

The demand for early paintings by the Viennese Actionist Günter Brus was particularly striking.

Three of his gestural mixed techniques made it into the six-figure range, and an ink painting on paper even achieved 150,000 euros.

The most expensive collage by Franz West to date, “Manhattan” from 1988 went for 145,000 euros, and a four-hand picture by the former artist couple Maria Lassnig and Arnulf Rainer from 1949 came to 130,000 euros.

Finally, the antiques offered a gem of the current Empress Sisi boom: one bidder approved 250,000 euros (150,000/300,000) for a privately owned marble statue of “Empress Elisabeth” created by the sculptor Hans Bitterlich in 1907.