Christie's

Christie's is an art business and a fine arts auction house.

Contents

History

The official company literature states that founder James Christie conducted the first sale in London, England, on 5 December 1766,[1] and the earliest auction catalogue the company retains is from December 1766. However, other sources note that James Christie rented auction rooms from 1762, and newspaper advertisements of Christie's sales dating from 1759 have also been traced.[2]

Christie's soon established a reputation as a leading auction house, and took advantage of London's new found status as the major centre of the international art trade after the French Revolution.

Christie's was a public company, listed on the London Stock Exchange from 1973 to 1999, after which it was taken into private ownership by Frenchman François Pinault.

On 28 December 2008, The Sunday Times reported that Pinault's debts left him "considering" the sale of Christie's and that a number of "private equity groups" were thought to be interested in its acquisition.[3] In January 2009, Christie's was reported to employ 2,100 people worldwide, though an unspecified number of staff and consultants were soon to be cut due to a worldwide downturn in the art market;[4] later news reports said that 300 jobs would be cut.[5] With sales for premier Impressionist, Modern, and contemporary artworks tallying only $US248.8 million in comparison to $US739 million just a year before, a second round of job cuts began after May 2009 when the auction house was still reported to employ 1,900 people worldwide.[6] One of the auction house's "rainmakers" in the sale of Impressionist and Modern art, Guy Bennett, resigned from the auction house just prior to the beginning of the summer 2009 sales season.[7] Although the economic downturn has encouraged some collectors to sell art, others are unwilling to sell in a market which may yield only bargain prices.[5]

The Christie's New York sign was created by Nancy Meyers during the production of Something's Gotta Give for an exterior shot. The auction house liked the sign so much that they requested the production leave it after shooting finished.

In September 2010, former Rodale President Steven Pleshette Murphy assumed the title of CEO, becoming the first American CEO in the auction house’s history.[8]

Locations

Christie's main London salesroom is on King Street in St. James's, where it has been based since 1823. It has a second London salesroom in South Kensington which opened in 1975 and primarily handles the middle market. Christie's South Kensington is one of the world's busiest auction rooms.

As of January 2009,[4] Christie's had 85 offices (not all are salesrooms) in 43 countries, including New York City, Los Angeles, Paris, Geneva, Amsterdam, Moscow, Vienna, Buenos Aires, Berlin, Rome, South Korea, Milan, Madrid, Japan, China, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, Tel Aviv, Dubai, Houston, and Mexico City. In 1995, Christie's became the first international auction house to exhibit works of art in Beijing, China.

Price-fixing scandal

In 2000, allegations surfaced of a price-fixing arrangement between Christie's and Sotheby's, another major auction house. Executives from Christie's subsequently alerted the Department of Justice of their suspicions of commission-fixing collusion.

Christie's gained immunity from prosecution in the United States as a longtime employee of Christie's confessed and cooperated with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Numerous members of Sotheby's senior management were fired soon thereafter, and A. Alfred Taubman, the largest shareholder of Sotheby's at the time, took most of the blame; he and Dede Brooks (the CEO) were given jail sentences, and Christie's, Sotheby's and their owners also paid a civil lawsuit settlement of $512 million.[9][10][11]

Notable auctions

Christie’s International Real Estate

Christie’s clients who buy and sell works of art often request real estate services. To satisfy this demand, Great Estates, founded by Kay Coughlin in 1987, was acquired by the auction house in 1995. Christie’s International Real Estate is a wholly owned subsidiary of Christie's, and is the leading international network of real estate brokers dedicated to the marketing and sale of luxury properties. The network spans more than 40 countries worldwide, with 1,000 offices and approximately 34,000 sales associates.[32]ha

Christie's Education Graduate Programmes

The educational arm of Christie's auction house is called Christie's Education. It has colleges in London and New York accredited by the University of Glasgow in the UK and the New York State Board of Regents in the USA. It offers Master's Degrees, Graduate Diplomas, Art Business Certificates and an Undergraduate Degree. Courses include: Arts of China; Arts of Europe; Art, Style and Design; Modern and Contemporary Art (all in London) and History of Art and the Art Market (in New York). Evening programmes in Art Business and Part-time, certificates in continuing education are also offered in London and New York.

Ventures

Christie's Images is the picture library for the auction house and has an archive of several million fine and decorative art images representing items sold in its sale rooms around the world. With offices in New York and London, images are available for reproduction.

With Bonhams, Christie's is a shareholder in the London-based Art Loss Register, a privately owned database used by law enforcement services worldwide to trace and recover stolen art.[33]

References

  1. ^ "Christies.com - About Us". http://www.christies.com/features/welcome/. Retrieved 2008-12-03. ""James Christie conducted the first sale in London on 5 December 1766. "" 
  2. ^ {Gazetteer and London Daily Advertiser (London, England), Saturday, 25 September 1762; Issue 10460}
  3. ^ Walsh, Kate (2008-12-28). "Pinault woes may force Château Latour sell-off". (London) Sunday Times. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article5404112.ece. Retrieved 2009-01-14. 
  4. ^ a b Werdigier, Julia (2009-01-12). "Christie’s Plans Cuts as Auctions Slow". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/13/business/worldbusiness/13auction.html. Retrieved 2009-01-12. 
  5. ^ a b Holson, Laura M. (2009-02-08). "In World of High-Glamour, Low-Pay Jobs, the Recession Has Its Bright Spots". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/nyregion/08auction.html. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  6. ^ "Christie’s Resumes Cutting Jobs After May N.Y. Auctions Decline". Bloomberg News. 2009-06-18. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=aqb7SPnwv3RM. Retrieved 2009-06-30. 
  7. ^ Vogel, Carol (2009-06-18). "Christie’s Executive Leaves a Top Post". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/19/arts/design/19vogel.html. Retrieved 2009-06-30. 
  8. ^ Top-Spot Shake-up ARTINFO.com
  9. ^ Rohleder, Anna (2001). "Who's Who In The Sotheby's Price-Fixing Trial". New York: Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/2001/11/14/1114players.html. Retrieved 2009-09-03. 
  10. ^ Mason, Christopher (2005-05-03). Art of the Steal: Inside the Sotheby's-Christie's Auction House Scandal. New York: Penguin Group. ISBN 978-1440604805. http://www.theartofthesteal.com/. 
  11. ^ "Going Once, Going Twice… Glamour, Greed and Fraud at Sotheby's and Christie's". Knowledge@Wharton. University of Pennsylvania. 2004-09-08. http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1034. Retrieved 2009-09-03. 
  12. ^ Kimmelman, Michael (1989-06-03). "The Getty Fills a Role, for Itself and the Public". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE4DB123BF930A35755C0A96F948260&. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  13. ^ "Stradivarius tops auction record". BBC News. 2006-05-17. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4988838.stm. Retrieved 2007-04-07. 
  14. ^ a b Vogel, Carol (2006-11-09). "$491 Million Sale at Christie's Shatters Art Auction Record". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D06E5D71E3FF93AA35752C1A9609C8B63&. Retrieved 2009-03-13. 
  15. ^ "Bulgaria, Christie's Face Off Over Looted Artifact". Art Info. November 7, 2006. http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/24278/bulgaria-christies-face-off-over-looted-artifact/. Retrieved 18 July 2011. 
  16. ^ Kodzhabasheva, Ani (June 7, 2011). "Rogue excavators routinely steal and destroy Bulgaria’s archaeological treasures". The Oxonian Globalist. http://toglobalist.org/2011/06/antiques-roadshow/. Retrieved 18 July 2011. 
  17. ^ http://www.lefigaro.fr/magazine/20070504.MAG000000372_les_p_tits_cracks_contre_le_cancer.html
  18. ^ http://loveandart.org/p/paris07.html
  19. ^ http://www.studiospecial.com/cl/aus/
  20. ^ Most expensive Gundam picture sold in history
  21. ^ Ink painting of Gundam sold at historical price
  22. ^ Gun-Slinging Robot, Wooden Beams Mark Quiet Hong Kong Art Sale
  23. ^ Gundam Fetches $600,000
  24. ^ Gundam Painting Auctioned for US$600,000+ in Hong Kong
  25. ^ a b c "Record-breaking YSL auction shrugs off crisis". Reuters. 2009-02-25. http://uk.reuters.com/article/stageNews/idUKTRE51J5QU20090225. Retrieved 2009-02-25. 
  26. ^ Erlanger, Steve (2009-02-23). "Yves Saint Laurent Art Sale Brings In $264 Million". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/24/arts/design/24auction.html. Retrieved 2009-02-25. 
  27. ^ "Eileen Gray 'Dragons' Chair Fetches $28 Million on Day Two of YSL Sale". mediabistro. 2009-02-25. http://www.mediabistro.com/unbeige/furniture/eileen_gray_dragons_chair_fetches_28_million_on_day_two_of_ysl_sale_109600.asp. Retrieved 2009-02-25. 
  28. ^ "YSL's seat sells for £19million". Metro.co.uk. 2009-02-25. http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?YSLs_seat_sell_for_%A319million&in_article_id=557756. 
  29. ^ Wong, Gillian (2009-02-26). "China slams Christie's auction of looted relics". Associated Press. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hOya4jms7uNhLzz1-R-ff_w-FFNAD96J5O3G0. Retrieved 2009-02-26. 
  30. ^ TRES RARE ET IMPORTANTE TETE DE LAPIN, Yves Saint Laurent sale catalog, Christie's (Paris), 24 February 2009.
  31. ^ TRES RARE ET IMPORTANTE TETE DE RAT, Yves Saint Laurent sale catalog, Christie's (Paris), 24 February 2009.
  32. ^ http://www.christiesrealestate.com/
  33. ^ The Art Loss Register, Ltd.: "The Art Loss Register is the world's largest database of stolen art and antiques dedicated to their recovery. Its shareholders include Christie's, Bonhams, members of the insurance industry and art trade associations. " Retrieved on 27 September 2008.

Bibliography

External links