Rare 'Ocean Dream' Diamond Fetches $17.3M at Christie's Geneva
At Christie's Geneva, a stunning 5.5-carat blue-green diamond named 'Ocean Dream' fetched $17.3 million, breaking the record for fancy vivid blue-green diamonds. The final bid surpassed its estimated range of $9 million to $13 million. In contemporary art, Sotheby's New York achieved over $433 million in sales, featuring 11 works from the Robert Mnuchin collection. After 36 years, Air de Paris has filed for bankruptcy. The Catherine Christer Hennix estate is now represented by Blank Forms, while Carine Karam has taken over as director of Opera Gallery in New York. Noteworthy upcoming art fairs include Zero 10 in Switzerland (June 17–21) and CAN Art Fair Ibiza (June 25–28). The Wellcome Collection plans to return 2,000 Jain manuscripts, and the Neue Galerie will be rebranded as the Met Neue Galerie in 2028. Recent notable passings include Valie Export (85), Mary Lovelace O'Neal (84), and Reginald Madison (84).
Key facts
- Ocean Dream diamond sold for $17.3 million at Christie's Geneva, setting a record for a fancy vivid blue-green diamond at auction.
- Sotheby's New York sold over $433 million worth of art in contemporary art sales, including 11 pieces from the Robert Mnuchin collection.
- Air de Paris declared bankruptcy and closed after 36 years.
- Blank Forms now represents the Catherine Christer Hennix estate.
- Carine Karam named director of Opera Gallery's New York outpost.
- Zero 10 digital art initiative at Art Basel will be curated by Trevor Paglen.
- CAN Art Fair Ibiza returns for fifth edition June 25–28 with 30 exhibitors.
- Art-o-rama returns to Marseille August 28–30 for 20th edition with 39 galleries.
- Wellcome Collection to return 2,000 Jain manuscripts to Jain community.
- M+ and Centre Pompidou announce multi-year strategic alliance.
- Frick Collection partners with Louis Vuitton for three years.
- Metropolitan Museum of Art and Neue Galerie to merge; Neue Galerie to become Met Neue Galerie in 2028.
- LANZA atelier designs 2026 Serpentine Pavilion.
- Cultural figures sign letter supporting Misan Harriman against antisemitism accusations.
- Trial begins for alleged murder of Brent Sikkema.
- Gozo Yoshimasu wins inaugural Serpentine X FLAG Art Foundation Prize.
- Jongjin Park receives Loewe Foundation Craft Prize.
- Rene Matić awarded 2026 Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation prize.
- Valie Export dies aged 85.
- Mary Lovelace O'Neal dies aged 84.
- Reginald Madison dies aged 84.
Entities
Artists
- Trevor Paglen
- Catherine Christer Hennix
- Gustav Klimt
- Max Beckmann
- Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
- Tracey Emin
- Peter Doig
- Misan Harriman
- Brent Sikkema
- Gozo Yoshimasu
- Jongjin Park
- Rene Matić
- Valie Export
- Mary Lovelace O'Neal
- Reginald Madison
- Isabel Abascal
- Alessandro Arienzo
Institutions
- Christie's
- Sotheby's
- Art Basel
- Air de Paris
- Blank Forms
- Opera Gallery
- Wellcome Collection
- Institute of Jainology
- University of Birmingham
- Wellcome Trust
- M+
- Centre Pompidou
- Frick Collection
- Louis Vuitton
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Neue Galerie
- Met Neue Galerie
- Serpentine Gallery
- Serpentine X FLAG Art Foundation
- Loewe Foundation
- Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation
- Southbank Centre
- CAN Art Fair Ibiza
- Art-o-rama
- Friche la Belle de Mai
- Hauser & Wirth
- Sprüth Magers
- bitforms
- Gazelli Art House
- La Bibi
- Gathering
- Verve
- Good Weather
- House of Chappaz
- Dittrich & Schlechtriem
- LANZA atelier
- Artnet News
- The Times
- Guardian
- Artnews
- Cultured
Locations
- Geneva
- Switzerland
- New York
- United States
- Miami Beach
- Ibiza
- Spain
- Marseille
- France
- London
- United Kingdom
- Hong Kong
- China
- Paris
- Chicago
- Barcelona
- Berlin
- Germany
- Palma de Mallorca
- São Paulo
- Brazil
- Pakistan