Record $2.5B Auction Week Nearly Doubles Last Year's Total

Last week, the auction houses Christie’s, Phillips, and Sotheby’s collectively generated around $2.5 billion in art sales, significantly surpassing the $1.3 billion from the same timeframe last May. Notable sales included a Jackson Pollock piece fetching $181.2 million after just seven minutes of bidding, a Constantin Brâncuși sculpture that sold for $107.6 million, and a Mark Rothko that was purchased for $6.7 million in 2003, which resold for $85.8 million. This week's figures account for approximately 4% of the global art market's 2025 sales, totaling $59.6 billion, marking the first growth after two years of decline, as reported by the 2026 Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report. Christie’s CEO Bonnie Brennan highlighted the importance of this week’s achievements.