Cattelan's 'Him' Fetches $17.2M at Christie's, Paola Pivi Sets Record

Christie's New York kicked off auction week with its 'Bound to Fail' sale, achieving a 97% sell-through rate by lot and 98% by value. The top lot was Maurizio Cattelan's 'Him' (2001), a kneeling wax and resin figure of Adolf Hitler, estimated at $10-12 million. After a prolonged bidding war against dealer Philippe Segalot, it sold for $17.2 million to a phone buyer, more than doubling Cattelan's previous record of $7.9 million set in 2010. The work had sparked controversy when exhibited in the Warsaw Ghetto in 2012. Jeff Koons' 'One Ball Total Equilibrium Tank (Spalding Dr. J Silver Series)' (1985) sold for $15.3 million. Martin Kippenberger's 'Feet First' (1990), depicting a crucified frog, fetched $1.3 million against a $700,000-900,000 estimate. Italian artist Paola Pivi set a record with 'Untitled (Donkey)', a donkey on a small boat, tripling its estimate of $60,000-80,000 to sell for $227,000. Other artists setting records included John Armleder, Neil Jenney, Rebecca Horn, and Daniel Buren.