Very much the talk of the town these days, actually both in London and in New York, Picasso’s late work hangs at Gagosian Gallery on 21st Street in Chelsea in an exhibition titled, Picasso: Mosqueteros.  The exhibition is curated by John Richardson, an old friend of the artist as well as his biographer who has published three volumes of A Life of Picasso.  The show is of excellent examples of Picasso’s late images of the musketeers from various private collections around the world (including the Cohen’s exceptional Homme a la Pipe, November 7, 1968 – see prior post for more on that collection’s current exhibitions) and a couple of arts institutions.  Explicit in nature, many of the works depict the musketeer (who must be read as Picasso) vanquishing his nude muse, here in the form of Picasso’s second wife Jacqueline.  Others are simply portraits of 17th century men, or musketeers, as their titles explain.  In the second large room, five portraits command either side of a still life of flowers on a table, dated October 28, 1969, along the large back wall.  The works are sometimes subtle with gentle washes of colors lending oil paint the effect of watercolor.  Other works are jarring in vibrant color applied in a thick impasto.  The paintings are often large and provide the viewer with exaggeratedly close up views of the subjects, and the dark, back room is alternatively filled with small lithographs requiring a close-up stance by the viewer in order to decipher the images.

The exhibition is on view through June 6, 2009  Gagosian Gallery, 522 West 21st Street, New York, NY 10011.

Sotheby’s is now showing a group of works on loan from the private collection of collectors Steven and Alexandra Cohen.  The single room, 20 piece exhibition encompasses some of the most masterful and intriguing images of women in art, from Edvard Munch’s Madonna to Picasso’s Le Repos (and two others) to Vincent Van Gogh’s 1890 Portrait of a Young Peasant Girl and a 1916 Modigliani nude to Andy Warhol’s Turquoise Marilyn.  To say these images are icons would be an understatement.  Also included in this exhibition are images of women from contemporary artists Marlene Dumas and Richard Prince.

Though rare for an auction house to exhibit works which are not for sale, the boundaries are blurring as art collectors themselves become investors in art businesses such as the Cohen involvement with Sotheby’s.

Regardless of the interests at stake here, this show presents a wonderful opportunity for the public to see these important pictures and sculptures.  The work is on view at Sotheby’s, 1334 York Avenue (at 72nd Street) through April 14th.

I recently spent a few days in London and had an amazing time seeing some of the museums and galleries I have not had a chance to see in the past.  This trip meant both some of the cutting edge and some of the classics.

The Courtauld Gallery was the highlight of the trip for me.  It is a small museum located at Somerset House on Strand, and it is brimming with treasures.  The Courtauld is best known for its Impressionist and Post-Impressionist collections, specifically the collection of Samuel Courtauld which was amassed between 1923 and 1929.  The icons of the period are more amazing in person than I even expected.  In one room hang Manet’s Bar at the Folies Bergere, a period copy of his Luncheon on the Grass, nine Cezanne masterpieces including both his constructed landscapes and portraits and three Gauguin paintings reflecting his time in both Brittany and Tahiti.  The Haystacks, 1889, by Gauguin, depicting the golden French hay fields, is a treat.   The next room holds its own with Van Gogh’s Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear, 1889, a Seurat portrait, a Modigliani nude circa 1916 and works by Monet.  To say nothing of the works by Botticelli, Cranach, Breugel,  Gainsborough and many others.  I look forward to returning many times.

Next stop, the National Gallery at Trafalgar Square.  I was thrilled to see some more icons: Seurat’s luminous, large Bathers at Asnieres, 1886, Manet’s Execution of Maximillian, Stubbs’ Whistlejacket, 1762,  Turner’s Rain, Steam and Speed, 1844, the room of Canalettos and the Arnolfini Wedding Portrait, not to mention the current special exhibition, Picasso, Challenging the Past.  I need days more to take it all in – I will be back.

The Saatchi Gallery at the Duke of York Headquarters in Chelsea is now open.  The current exhibition, Unveiled: New Art from the Middle East,fills the large and bustling gallery space with varied and interesting work.  Among the best are Shadi Ghadirian’s large scale color photographs.  Upstairs in the Project Room is a hilarious installation piece, The Bed, by New York artist Will Ryman of an enormous  papier mache male figure strewn across a bed surrounded by the remains of a late night: Doritos, cigarettes, beer cans, etc.

Gallery hopping in Mayfair-St. James I found a great exhibition at Art First Contemporary Art on Cork Street of works by recently deceased gallery artist Wilhelmina Barns-Graham entitled Paintings 1965-1980.  I also took in the current shows along Cork Street and at Hauser & Wirth and wound up at Haunch of Venison’s Mythologies.  All in all, a very successful and varied weekend of seeing art.  I look forward to doing it again soon.

I picked up a copy of Sidra Stich’s art-SITES london which is a great guide to carry with you as you make your way on such extensive art tours.

The controversy at the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University which erupted earlier this year when the University’s Board voted to close the museum and sell its collection remains in the news.  The decision was made to raise operating expenses for the University – a no-no, and the source of the controversy.  The Museum as it is currently known will still be closed to the public and will now be an academic fine arts center for the University.  The matter of the future of the collection remains unclear at this time though it continues to stir controversy in the press and in the arts and academic communities.

Another institution recently accused of violating deaccessioning protocol in museum circles is the National Gallery Museum in New York.  That institution sold two paintings in December for $13.5 million to raise operating funds and stated its plans to sell two additional works as well.  The American Association of Museums instantly imposed sanctions on the museum by ordering all other museums to stop all loans to the offender and to cease any future collaborative projects.  This week, however, the AAM and the NGM sat down together to work out a compromise which would allow the NGM to remain a museum in good standing so long as they agreed not to sell any other works from their collection.  The AAM members would also voluntarily help the NGM work through its current problems and to make it a viable institution.

In an attempt to add  state legislation into the mix of museum association ethical codes which currently advise museums on what they can and can not do, New York Assemblyman Richard Brodsky on Tuesday introduced a new bill with the New York State Board of Regents (which oversees educational activities within the state) to the New York State Legislature proposing to set deaccessioning guidelines for state museums which would prevent actions such as those taken by the NGM.  Intended to protect the public trust and to ensure that museums remain intact for the good of the public, the legislation represents a new approach to the problem which typically involves just the art and museum community.  The Museum Association of New York participated in drafting the legislation as well .  In financial times such as these we can expect the problem to grow in the short term as the ranks of cash-strapped institutions swell.  Will other states follow this lead?

A viewer recently emailed me with an interesting inquiry, so I will share it with you here.  This potential seller owns a sculpture which she is interested in selling as she learned that prices for this sculptor’s work have tripled over the past ten years and that the works sold very well at a recent auction.  She contacted the auction house who just recently sold the work and asked them to give her a sense of her sculpture’s value at a future auction.  The auction house suggested putting a reserve price on the work should it come up for auction at half the amount the work sold for twelve years ago despite the surge in the art market in recent years.  The confused and upset seller asked me to explain what was at play in this situation and how she might sell her work of art for the best possible price.

My response was that the auction house is telling her what they think they can get for the work currently, so it may be a reflection on their ability to sell the work more so than on the actual value of the work itself.  In times like this, where the number and depth of buyers at an auction are not as sure as they have been in recent years, auction houses will cut the estimates on works in order to increase the likelihood that they will sell the art and not deter bids by an intimidating estimate.  They will also lower reserve prices to be sure the work sells regardless if the piece achieves a record price.  A recent article on Bloomberg explains more about this practice of cutting estimates and reserve prices in down markets.  If you are not prepared to accept a low auction reserve price, then perhaps this is not the right venue or time to sell your artwork.  Again, the low estimate or reserve is usually a reflection of the auction house’s confidence in their ability to sell the piece of art rather than on their opinion of the work of art itself.

There are some things one can do as a seller to try to achieve the best price for a work of art.  First, I advised the seller to go to competing auction houses for estimates on the current auction value of your sculpture.  For example, Sotheby’s might be a good place to consider once you have spoken with Christie’s and vice versa.  If the work is sought after perhaps one might be in the position to better the offer of the other.  Next, as the particular work at issue here was done by an internationally known artist who happens not to be an American, I would try the auction houses local offices – perhaps Asia, Spain or London might be a better sales venue for your sculpture than New York.  I suggested the seller inquire regarding the auction houses’ potentially differing opinions on saleability by location. 

Next, try regional auction houses such as Dawson & Nye in New Jersey, Skinner in Boston, Leslie Hindman in Chicago or Doyle Galleries on New York’s Upper East Side.  All cities tend to have such auctioneers, and they will often give you very different answers, again depending upon what they believe to be their chances of selling the work. 

Third, approach dealers who sell the artist’s work or that genre in general.  You usually get more money in selling a work privately (with a dealer or private buyer) than you would at auction once you consider fees involved.  A quick Google search (the name of the artist + the word gallery) brought up a good gallery which I suggested the seller approach.  If that gallery is not interested (always talk to the Director if possible, not the front desk assistant who answers the phone) then I suggested that she ask who the director or dealer thinks would be interested - dealers know their competition.  (Again, that may be an international dealer as well.)  Some art consultants, private dealers and galleries will advertise artists whose work they buy, typically on their websites and in print advertisements — the Internet can be a useful tool in locating the right venue in this regard as well.