A three-panel art work by Francis Bacon lately got success in breaking the NYC auction record at contemporary art auction on 14 May. It fetched in sales of $86 million plus after three bidders contended for it. The $86,281,000 price of the masterwork “Triptych, 1976” also set an auction record for the British artist. Another artwork that set an auction record is a 1963 painting “Overdrive” by pop artist Robert Rauschenberg. The painting generated sales of $14.6 million plus. Both the artworks got sold to an anonymous buyer and the aforementioned prices include the commission of the auction house.

Note: Counted 10 artworks from the lot of 83 failed to sell, thereby breaking records for almost 18 artists starting from Yves Klein and Piero Manzoni to Tom Wesselmann and Takashi Murakami.

Via AP

Auction reports from Sotheby’s reveal that a cubist oil painting by 20th century French artist Fernand Leger generated sales of $39.2 million on 7 May at New York based auction. The pre-auction estimate for the 1912-1913 painting, “Study for a Woman in Blue,” was $35 million to $45 million. The conceptual arithmetical painting portrays a woman in a blue dress seated at a table with her hands in her lap.

Another painting that has set an artist record is Edvard Munch’s (munk) 1902 “Girls on a Bridge” as it got sold off for $30.8 million against its pre-sale guesstimate of $24-$28 million.

Via USAuctionInfo

The parody resides in the very name of the chair. Don’t let your mind bent towards a pedestrian side as the chair: Walk-Don’t Walk is miles away from walking. Artisan John Carter formed a perfect blend of the fine art, interior design and social commentary and the result is before your eyes.

Developed using genuine New York City signs, the USP of the chair reside in its movement being monitored by a remote control. The integrated remote control allows you to on and off the signs when needed. Ideally, they should read: Sit Or Don’t Sit. It drives power from a standard 115V wall outlet and the custom-built bulbs can be used whenever need arouse. The configured legs of the chair are made using steel street sign brackets and are stimulated and fixed with self leveling feet.

These handmade chairs reflect scuffs and stains of living in New York for ages and if these old appeal fails to impress you then you can opt to for a whiny clean look. The seating facade is made from an inch thick via polished resin glass. It can be yours if you are willing to drop $3700.

Via CoolestGadgets/ MakeZine

One can’t assist but speculate number of nattily decent citizens sitting countless nights at International auction houses viz. Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Phillips de Pury in coming next two weeks. A good percentage could be of serious bidders and others would be voyeurs eager to observe an implosion of $$$$ art market. It’s now being years that collectors and media have been waiting for the day when prices would finally top. But this time auction houses are hopeful that time will take a toll and things will play out well as they did three months ago in London, when, in spite of global economic nausea, a Francis Bacon triptych painting fetched $51.6 million.

Some highlights of the upcoming auctions:

Artist: Francis Bacon

Artwork: “Three Studies for Self-Portrait,’’ Triptych 1976
Auction House: Christie’s
Ballpark Figure: $25 million and $35 million

Artist: Jeff Koons

Artwork: “New Hoover convertibles, New Shelton Wet/Drys 5-Gallon, Double Decker”
Auction House: Christie’s
Sales: Christie’s post-war and contemporary sales
Ballpark Figure: $10 million
Date: 13 May

Artist: Monet

Artwork: “Le Pont du Cheminde Fer à Argenteuil,” 1873

Auction House: Christie’s
Ballpark Figure:$35 million
Date: 6 May

Artist: Edvard Munch

Artwork: “Girls on a Bridge,” a 1902 oil canvas painting
Auction House: Sothey’s New York Impressionist and Modern Art - Part I auction
Ballpark Figure: $28 million
Date: 7 May
Artist: Alberto Giacometti

Artwork: “Grande Femme Debout II,” 1959-60
Auction House: Christie’s
Ballpark Figure: $18 million
Date: 13 May
Artist: Henri Matisse, French painter

Artwork: “Portrait au mateau bleu”
Auction House: Christie’s Spring Impressionist and Modern sales
Ballpark Figure: $17 million
Date: 6 May
Artist: Pierre Patel the Elder

Artwork: ‘A landscape at Evening with Travelers’ and a Hunter Near Classical Ruins’ painted around 1640
Auction House: Sotheby’s London
Ballpark Figure: $800,000-$1.2 million
Date: 9 July

Via NYT

The online market space is witnessing a surge in elite designer furniture niche. While months back, Christie’s rechristened it’s House Sales as Christie’s Interiors to invite creative minds, collectors and new-entrants achieve exclusive range of objects and collectibles. This practice was smilingly followed by another antiques and design-based site, 1st Dibs that enables people a stress-free access over a pool of vintage designs.

And the latest in the headlines is Artnet’s Design Marketplace that features furniture and decorative art gathered from over 150 galleries across 75 countries. The site displays around 3,000 works for sale from 1,000 plus established designers’ viz. Carlo Mollino, Isamu Noguchi, Jean Royère, Marc Newson and Zaha Hadid, amongst many others. It gives you an easy search facility to look for products while searching for designers, products, style, age, price and also location. The cost of these designer accessories varies from $$$ for a vase to a designer creation of “room-within-a-room” stimulated by a conventional Dutch bedstee by designer Hella Jongerius.

The ramparts and cabinets of Jongerius’s Bedstee are slackly upholstered and it offers a soft statuette of a candleholder. The piece generated a sale of $80,000 via NY shop Moss.

Via Desxigner

The yearly Kips Bay Decorator Show House started in New York on 24 April and will run through 22 May. To my utter surprise, around 22 designers would be using this as a platform and are provided with six apartments at The Manhattan House, 200 East 66th Street to participate in the Kips Bay Decorator Show House. For the first time in the history of 36 years, the show is being held in an apartment building rather than a town house. In coming days I would be updating you with designer credits. Tickets for the show would cost you $30.

Some interesting stuff direct from 2008 Kips Bay Decorator Show:

An Audi-design prototype chandelier hangs above a table in the Daniel Boulud kitchen. Also, the artwork of Caceres + Miranda designed by Geoffrey Bradfield is quite interesting. Simon Horn crib, configured here for a toddler, sits on display in a children’s room designed by Bograd Kids. A teak torso of drawers with superimposed silver breeds luxury. The BKH-designed living rooms, modern furniture, including a Vladimir Kagan sofa are amongst the attraction of the Show House.

A Vic Muniz drawing of chef Daniel Boulud hung in a Kitchen designed by Daniel Boulud and Rita-Louisa Garces.

The wavering 60’s chicks room, designed by Ellen Ward Scarborough Ltd. Is mind blowing. Sculpture by Jean Arp (R) features well in a therapist’s room designed by S. Russell Groves. Another elite attraction was chairs designed by Stephen Miller Siegel which have upholstered in horsehair fabric. Lastly, a bedroom suite designed by White Webb is worth a pick.

Check out the gallery:

Via HabituallyChic/ NYT

This unique and contemporary creation of porcelain-like Uterus Vase by The Plug and Stéphanie Rollin is from the limited edition of 20 pieces made up of polish and glaze around a resin center. The concept behind this vase is to reinstate decorum to an over-utilized representation. At first sight, it is no less than a vessel whose outline and conclusion distress led to hesitant mind-set. In today’s era, everyone is well versed with the form of the female reproductive organ, thanks to illustrations and graphics in biology or anatomy books but till date one hesitates talking about it openly.

Nonetheless, the statuary exquisiteness of this silky porcelain-like vase of pure pastiness gives its decorum back to an inherent human topic that these days has become the distinguished theme of over-consumed erotic metaphors. The mysterious infamy of its form, as for it, depicts the true profundity of the theme reverentially perceived by its inventor.

Via PureContemporary

We all remember King Arthur inviting all knights around renowned ‘Round Table’ during his time asking to bring peace and tranquility to the nation. But little were we aware that a furniture accessory could be erected on the same line. Yeah, don’t take me insane as this has been successfully done.

Featured above is a table symbolic of justice, equality and joy in life. Arthur is a table crafted to arouse unity, parity and communiqué. It is available in three sizes housing 8, 10 and 12 persons. It enables each of the person to face each other and is ideal for family dinners or executive meetings. To be precise, the maximum distance between two people to still have a good communication is 2.40m. The problem with large-size table can be its transportability but Extremis have separated the table into sections, resulting in very compressed wrapping.

To add beauty to the ambiance, Extremis offers an integrated torch, an oil lamp that can be lightened at the middle when installed inside. It produces a comfortable tone and reminds of the king Arthur legend. When kept outside, it is defiant to UV emission in sunshine, which means that the insignia will not alter considerably for another 10 years.

It is priced at €3,200

Via

Featured above is a lately exposed wooden sculpture of Dainichi Nyorai or Buddha carrying religious objects sealed in its torso for almost 800 years. It got sold for $14.3 million (€9.07 million) during Christie’s auction, thereby breaking the earlier record set by a Rakuchu Rakugai screen that fetched $1.76 million in 1990. Enjoying the presence in the sphere of Japanese work of art by making a world record, the figurine is accredited to Unkei, measured as one of the two best sculptors of the early Kamakura period in 1190s, when Buddhist art was actively practiced.

It was sold off on 18 March 2008 by Mitsukoshi Ltd. You would be surprised to know that the presale estimate was $1.5-2 million. Made of Cyprus wood, the Buddha is clad in generous attire and is positioned in a lotus position with a tiara and trinkets, and hair in a topknot.

Its whereabouts were unknown until now when it was sold to a dealer of Buddhist art most recently. The identity of the buyer is not to be disclosed. The knowledge of the owner considering Buddha statue to be hollow underwent an X-ray at Tokyo National Museum and it was identified that it carries three memorial items, representing Buddhist cipher viz. a wood pagoda, a crystal pagoda and a crystal ball on a bronze stand.

Via IHT

This unique blend of drinks, crystal, art and design worlds as a part of Bombay Sapphire Revelation is worth glaring. Doing against with the conventional theme of plain bottles, it is a compilation of five-gorgeous bottles. Undoubtedly, Bombay Sapphire is the drink with a company of Baccarat crystal and the sharp mind behind this creation is of Garrard ( art/jeweler) and Karim Rashid (bottle designer).

Seemingly colossal jewels, the identity of the bottles depends upon their exclusive caps with each one festooned with pricey diamonds and sapphires. The collection would cost you $1mn but a single bottle can be yours at $200,000 only. Word is around that each of these bottles would be exhibited independently at one of the five airports globally viz. New York, London, Dubai, Sydney and Singapore. The sales proceeds would be donated towards The Smile Train charity. The fortunate owners of the Revelation are entitles to receive a deal of supplying a years supply of Bombay Sapphire gin.

Via Luxist