Phillips Presents Largest-Ever Auction of Sebastião Salgado's Photographs in New York

Phillips auction house is presenting 'Sebastião Salgado: A Life's Voyage,' the largest auction offering of the photographer's work ever assembled. The sale features 30 signed photographs from a private collection spanning over four decades of his career. Online bidding runs from April 2-10, 2026, with a live auction scheduled for April 11 in New York. All works are lifetime-signed prints, adding historical significance following Salgado's death in 2025. Key lots include the portfolios 'Gold Mine' (1986) and 'Kuwait: A Desert on Fire' (1991), the latter appearing at auction for the first time. The selection explores Salgado's central themes of humanity, labor, and nature across locations from the Amazon to Antarctica. Specific works highlighted include 'Church Gate Station, Western Railroad Line, Bombay, India, 1995' with an estimate of $6,000-8,000, 'Iceberg Between Paulet Island and the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica' (2005), and 'Fireball, Greater Burhan Oil Field, Kuwait, 1991' estimated at $25,000-35,000. The 'Gold Mine' portfolio has an estimate of $100,000-150,000. The auction reflects growing market demand for Salgado's work, confirming his enduring global importance in contemporary photography. Beyond his artistic impact, Salgado's environmental and social legacy includes co-founding the Instituto Terra reforestation project with his wife Lélia Wanick Salgado.