Joan Mitchell Painting Achieves Record Asian Auction Price for Female Artist

A significant painting by American abstract expressionist Joan Mitchell achieved a major auction result in Asia. The work, titled 'La Grande Vallée VII' from 1983, was sold at Sotheby's modern and contemporary evening sale in Hong Kong on March 29. The final price reached HK$137.4 million, equivalent to approximately $17.6 million including fees. This transaction established a new benchmark as the highest-priced artwork by a woman artist ever sold at auction within Asia. The painting was acquired by a bidder participating online, with the final amount slightly exceeding the lower pre-sale estimate of HK$110 million. This piece previously changed hands at a Christie's auction in New York during July 2020, where it realized $14.5 million. 'La Grande Vallée VII' belongs to a renowned series of twenty-one paintings created by Mitchell between 1983 and 1984. This body of work, produced during a peak period in her career, is widely regarded as a definitive representation of her artistic approach. The sale at Sotheby's Hong Kong emerged as the top-performing lot across the major spring auction events held in the city by leading auction houses.