THE season’s modern and contemporary art sales begin today at London’s major auction houses: Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Phillips. But predictions are gloomy. Presale estimates at all three houses shows a fall of 26 per cent since last year. The total presale estimate is £355 million, a big fall on last year’s £461 million, according to Artnet. That’s despite the number of lots going up.
It’s a fresh blow for collectors, dealers and gallerists who have feared for a while that London’s place in the art world is slipping. Earlier this year European fair Masterpiece, and Olympia, which sells antiques as well as art, cancelled their annual London shows.
