Much of the speculation about the series of modern art auctions beginning in New York tomorrow has focused on Edvard Munch’s “Scream,” which is expected to sell at Sotheby’s for more than $106.4m. This would make it the most expensive painting ever sold at auction. There are a variety of other high value offerings, however, that in any other season would be getting the attention. These include Mark Rothko’s “Orange, Red, Yellow,” for which Christie’s expects a price of $35m-$45m, Andy Warhol’s “Double Elvis,” which carries a $30m-$50m estimate at Sotheby’s, and Roy Lichtenstein’s “Sleeping Girl,” which Sotheby’s estimates at $30m-$40m.Ladbrokes, the British bookmaking firm, has created a lively secondary market from the excitement surrounding the coming sales, placing odds at 3-1 that “Scream” will sell for $150m-$200m, at 5-2 that it will be a Russian who buys it, and 3-1 that will be an Asian or European who’ll be behind the winning paddle. All this points to an emerging class of massively wealthy new collectors from Russia, Asia, and the Middle East who have, in effect, created a new market.
Read more at The New York Times.
