NEW YORK, NY.- The two-auction Maurice Sendak sales series concluded yesterday with Maurice Sendak: Artist, Collector, Connoisseur Online, which was 100 percent sold by lot and 197 percent hammer and premium against low estimate. This brings the total for both sales to $5,533,238, with both sales together at 93 percent sold by lot, and 130 percent hammer and premium above low estimate. Overall, one out of three bidders and buyers in both sales was new to the category at Christie’s. On Tuesday, June 10th, which would have been Maurice Sendak’s 97th Birthday, Maurice Sendak: Artist, Collector, Connoisseur totaled $4,872,494. It was 124 percent sold hammer and buyer’s premium against low estimate, and 83 percent sold by lot. To help ensure that children will continue to be enchanted by the next generation of visual storytellers, these sales will support the Sendak Fellowship, a residency program at The Maurice Sendak Foundation, a nonprofit organization that encourages, teaches and supports artists who tell stories with illustration.

Head of Christie’s Private and Iconic Collections, Elizabeth Siegel said, “Christie’s is honored to support the Sendak Foundation with two auctions that received a warm response from the market. Collectors showed strong interest in both Maurice Sendak the artist and the collector, achieving strong prices for Sendak’s artworks as well as those that inspired his treasured illustrations.”

Just prior to the live auction on June 10th, Christie’s and the New York Public Library sponsored a reading of Sendak works at FAO Schwarz (where Sendak once worked designing windows). The Children’s librarian, Louise Lareau, read several books including Where the Wild Things Are to a crowd of kids, all of whom took home a craft project. FAO Schwarz offered a special pop up shop in its lobby, and the office of Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine provided an official proclamation declaring June 10, 2025 Maurice Sendak Appreciation Day.