NEW YORK.- Christie’s reshaped auction history in the past two weeks, as the fall sales of Impressionist, Modern, Post-War and Contemporary Art realized a total of $866,356,600. A breathtaking selection of masterworks was exhibited in the galleries of Christie’s New York at Rockefeller Center and subsequently found its way into some of the most renowned private collections and prestigious museums all over the world. Christie’s results emphasized the company’s status as the world’s leading art business and its dominance in the uppermost echelons of the market.

“The sales of the past two weeks were among the most anticipated and closely watched events the art market ever witnessed,” said Marc Porter, President, Christie’s Americas. “The limitless energy and fantastic results of these sales, along with their international character, both in terms of offered works as well as participating bidders, reinforced the fact that the art market has become truly global and that Christie's understanding of this ever evolving environment is second to none.”

“In a landmark sale, the biggest in auction history, nearly half a billion dollar’s worth of art changed hands last night at Christie’s sale of Impressionist and Modern Art. Soaring prices for blockbuster paintings by Klimt and Gauguin left thousands of spectators who came to watch and to buy, gasping.” New York Times, November 11

Christie’s evening sale of Impressionist and Modern Art totaled $491,472,000, was98% sold by value and 93% by lot and set a new total record for any sale, ever. The sale included four masterpieces by Gustav Klimt that had been restituted to the heirs of Adele and Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer in January 2006 – the works totaled $192.7 million and a new world auction record was set for Gustav Klimt with Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II at $87.9 million. The portrait also became the third highest selling painting to have been sold at auction. Other cornerstones of the sale were Paul Gauguin’s L’H�mme � la H�che at $40.3 million; Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s Berliner Strassenszene at $38 million, which was acquired by the Neue Galerie and Egon Schiele’s Einzelne H�user at $22.4 million. All three prices were new world auction records for the artists. Buyers were 39.5% American, 42.5% European, 4% Asian, 1.5% Russian, 3% Latin American and 9.5% other and nine new world auction records were set. The next day saw unprecedented totals for the Works on Paper sale ($13.7) and Impressionist and Modern Art Day Sale ($45.1 million).

“For the second week running, Christie's made auction history as its auctioneer extraordinaire, Christopher Burge, sold 64 works of Contemporary art for $239.7 million, the highest total ever achieved in the field.” The International Herald Tribune, November 16

The evening sale of Post-War and Contemporary Art totaled $239,704,000, the highest ever total for a sale in the field, and also provided the setting for a new world auction record price for any post-war work when Willem de Kooning’s Untitled XXV sold for $27.1 million. The sale was impressive in its large group of rare masterworks, including a group of eight works by Andy Warhol of which Mao was the leading lot at $17,376,000 (a new record for Warhol at auction). In total the sale produced nineteen new world auction records including for artistic giants such as Andy Warhol, Willem de Kooning, Clyfford Still and Richard Diebenkorn. The sale was 89% sold by value and 92% sold by lot. Buyers were 64.8% American, 15.5% European, 9.9% Asian and 9.8% other. The Morning and Afternoon sales which took place the next day caused sheer astonishment throughout. The Post-War and Contemporary Art Morning Session, which was so actively participated in that it took four hours, realized $51.2 million, not only the highest ever for a day sale in the field but also outperforming the impressionist and modern day sale for the very first time. It was immediately followed by the Post-War and Contemporary Art Afternoon Session which fetched $25 million – another record result.