DIRIYAH.- Sotheby’s staged its second auction in Saudi Arabia — almost one year to the day after history was made with the first-ever auction in the Kingdom. The 250-seat venue was filled to capacity as guests gathered for Origins II, a sale of modern and contemporary art showcasing leading Saudi and Middle Eastern artists alongside renowned international names.

A landmark auction record for a Saudi artist was achieved early in the sale as Safeya Binzagr’s Coffee Shop in Madina Road realised $2.1 million, more than ten times its high estimate ($150,000-200,000). The result nearly doubled the previous auction record for a Saudi artist, set at Sotheby’s London in October 2023 with a work by Mohammed Al Saleem, as it also became the third highest price for a work by an Arab artist sold at auction and the most valuable work of art sold at auction in Saudi Arabia.

The result also established the third highest price for a work by an Arab artist sold at auction and As the birthplace of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and home to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of At-Turaif, Diriyah once again provided a spectacular backdrop, welcoming some 4,500 visitors to the week-long pre-sale exhibition at Bujairi Terrace. By the time the hammer fell on the final lot, collectors from across more than 40 countries had participated, with a third of the lots sold to buyers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

FACTS & FIGURES:

• Sale total: $19,585,070 (est. $11.7-16.6m)
o Bringing the total for fine art offered in Origins and Origins II to more than $32m
• Almost 4,500 exhibition visitors and over 1,750 RSVPs to the panel discussions
• Collectors from 40+ countries participated in the auction
• A third of lots sold to buyers from within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• Three auction records achieved: Safeya Binzagr (Lot 3), Ahmed Morsi (Lot 5), Abdel Badie Abdel Hay (Lot 48)

TOP LOTS OF THE NIGHT:

Saudi Artists

• All nine works by Saudi artists were sold, achieving a combined total of $4.3 million, far surpassing the pre-sale high estimate for the group of $1.1 million.

• Leading the sale, multiple bidders competed for Coffee Shop on Madina Road by Safeya Binzagr (Lot 3).

o Offered with distinguished provenance – from the collection of Alberto Mestas García, former Ambassador of Spain to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and his wife, Mercedes Suárez de Tangil Guzmán – the work soared to $2,063,000, a new auction record for a Saudi artist (est. $150,000–200,000).

• An untitled work from 1989 by Mohammed Al Saleem (Lot 10) sold for a triple estimate $756,000 (est. $150,000–200,000).

o A second work by the artist, Flow from 1987 (Lot 21), achieved $630,000 (est. $150,000–200,000).

• The sale opened with the auction debut of Mohamed Siam (Lot 1), one of the most significant voices of Saudi Arabia’s second generation of modern artists, whose Untitled (Camel Race) sold for $94,500 (est. $70,000–90,000).

• Also making his first auction appearance, Dia Aziz Dia’s prize-winning La Palma (The Palma) (Lot 57) achieved $226,800 (est. $60,000–80,000).

• Three works by Abdulhalim Radwi were led by Untitled (Hajj Arafah) (Lot 4), also hailing from the collection of Alberto Mestas García and his wife, which made $214,200 (est. $100,000–150,000).

Artists from Across the Region

• Demonstration (Lot 41), a rare masterwork by celebrated Iraqi artist Mahmoud Sabri – recognised as a crucial figure in the Iraqi modern art movement – sold for $403,200 (est. $400,000–500,000).

• Tehran-born Ali Banisadr’s Divine Winds (Lot 9) doubled its estimate to achieve $315,000 (est. $100,000–150,000).

• Samia Halaby’s Copper (Lot 2), hailing from the Samawi Collection (one of the largest private collections of modern Arab, Iranian and Turkish art), surpassed its estimate to achieve $315,000 (est. $120,000–180,000).

• Deux Pêcheurs (Two Fishermen) by Ahmed Morsi (Lot 5), one of the most notable Egyptian artists of his generation whose works rarely appear at auction, realised $189,000 (est. $120,000–180,000) - a new auction record for the artist.

International Masters

• Pablo Picasso’s Paysage (Lot 22), painted during the final decade of the artist’s life, sold for $1,600,000 (est. $2–3 million), becoming the second most valuable artwork sold at auction in Saudi Arabia.

o Two ceramics by the artist exceeded their estimates, led by Femme du barbu (Lot 38) selling for $60,480 (est. $20,000–30,000).

• Seven works by Roy Lichtenstein from the treasured personal collection of Dorothy and Roy Lichtenstein, including collages, prints, works on paper and sculptures, all found buyers, led by Interior with Ajax (Study) (Lot 13) – the study for a painting commissioned by the late fashion designer Gianni Versace, directly from the artist – which realised $882,000 (est. $600,000–800,000).

o This tranche marks the latest instalment of works to come to auction from the artist’s estate across a series of sales, 100% sold, that began at Sotheby’s in New York in November 2024, bringing the combined total to more than $172m.

• Andy Warhol was represented in the sale with two works: Disquieting Muses (After de Chirico), executed in acrylic and silkscreen ink on canvas, which sold for $1,033,200 (est. $800,000–1.2m) (Lot 7), and a complete set of four screenprints of Muhammad Ali (Lot 17), which achieved $352,000 (est. $300,000–500,000).

• A large-scale concave mirror sculpture by Anish Kapoor from the artist’s celebrated series – in a vibrant, saturated pink (Lot 29) – sold for $730,800 ($600,000–800,000).

• Origen (Lot 8), a light installation by American artist James Turrell, achieved $630,000 (est. $350,000–450,000) – the third highest price for the artist at auction, all of which have been achieved over the past year.

o In January 2025, Turrell unveiled plans for a monumental installation in AlUla, a project posed to leave a lasting impact on Saudi Arabia's cultural landscape.