International

About 80% of the global art market by value takes place outside the UK. The largest art market in the world is the US with China in third place (after the UK) followed by France, Germany and Switzerland.

Many more nations have a rich art and antiques heritage with active auction, dealer, fair, gallery and museum sectors even if their market size by value is smaller.

Read the top stories and latest art and antiques news from all these countries.

The French vintage furniture platform Selency was founded by Maxime Brousse and Charlotte Cadé in 2014. Now it is live for UK users.

Online Parisian vintage furniture platform launches in UK

30 April 2018

A French online marketplace for vintage furniture and home decorating items has launched a UK website.

Poster

Rare London Underground poster designed by Man Ray to be auctioned in New York

30 April 2018

A classic, rare 1938 poster for the London Underground designed by the Surrealist artist Man Ray is one of the highlights of a graphic design sale to be held by Swann Galleries on May 3.

img_34-4.jpg

French auctioneers’ showcase kicks off this month

30 April 2018

The last weekend of the month, May 25-27, is given over to the latest staging of the Journées Marteau (Art Auctioneers Days) held by the French auctioneers’ association SYMEV.

Greek horse's head

Ancient Greek horse’s head rears up at Monaco auction

30 April 2018

Survivals of ancient classical sculpture carved from ivory are incredibly rare, so the appearance on the market of this naturalistically carved ancient Greek horse’s head is a notable occasion.

img_35-3.jpg

Decorative arts in focus at auction in Maryland

30 April 2018

Weschlers’ mixed-owner Capital Collections sale in Rockville, Maryland, on May 11 will offer a very wide range of fine and decorative arts.

Golf book

First golf book tees off in the US

30 April 2018

Published in 1895, Wright & Dixon’s Guide to American Golf… was one of the very first books on the game to appear in that country. A copy sold on April 12 in San Francisco for $42,500 (£29,930) was billed as “perhaps the only copy extant”.

img_34-1.jpg

TEFAF leaps into second spring

30 April 2018

New York City hosts another edition as the fair format becomes established in the US

Album

Russian album is crowning glory at US auction

30 April 2018

Printed for circulation only among members of the imperial family and those foreign dignitaries who had participated in the celebrations, an album recording the 1883 coronation in Moscow of Tsar Alexander III and the Empress Marie Feodorovna sold for $30,000 (£21,125) in a US sale.

Book

Complete 17th century work is a great rarity of Judaica

30 April 2018

Bound in recent times as six volumes in elaborately gilt crushed scarlet morocco, a 1614-17 Prague first of a major commentary on the Mishnah by Rabbi Yom Tov Lipmann Heller (1579-1654), was a highlight of a recent New York sale of Judaica.

Cash

New money laundering regulation a “disproportionate burden” on art and antiques businesses

27 April 2018

A European Union update to current anti-money laundering regulation designed to tackle terrorist financing risks will place an extra administrative burden on art and antiques businesses, warn trade associations.

Freeman’s

Famous names of British photography come to auction in Philadelphia

26 April 2018

Included in Freeman’s Modern and Contemporary Art auction in Philadelphia will be 32 lots of photographs by some of the best known names in British photography.

How police tracked down suspects after rare coins stolen from American football star Rob Gronkowski

25 April 2018

Two suspects have been arrested in Massachusetts following a night-time break-in at the home of New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.

Mossgreen

Mossgreen consignors free to collect goods without facing charges from administrator BDO

25 April 2018

The administrator to collapsed Australian auction house Mossgreen has lost a court case over fees which means goods can be returned to their rightful owners without fees being due.

Nu couché by Amedeo Modigliani

Sotheby’s unveil Modigliani’s largest painting ahead of New York auction – video

24 April 2018

The largest painting ever made by Amedeo Modigliani (1884-1920) has been unveiled by Sotheby’s ahead of its auction in New York next month. It is estimated in excess of $150m and will be the star lot at its Impressionist and Modern sale on May 14.

New York trade takes state’s ivory ban to court

23 April 2018

A New York law banning the sale of antique ivory has been challenged in court by two leading US antiques dealers associations.

Silver handbag

Sterling silver Hermès handbag makes auction record at Spink in Hong Kong

23 April 2018

The highlight of the inaugural handbag auction held by Spink in Hong Kong was a sterling silver Hermès Kelly handbag.

img_31-2.jpg

British birds and natural history fly high in New York

23 April 2018

Sold for $300,000 (£214,185) apiece in a recent New York sale were three very well-known works from the worlds of cartography and natural history.

img_44-3.jpg

Peintures Bordelaises dedicated sale in Bordeaux

23 April 2018

On April 28 the Bordeaux auction house Briscadieu is holding a sale devoted to Peintures Bordelaises – featuring scenes by a mix of local artists and those from further afield who visited this picturesque region. An idea started in 2015, this is the auctioneers’ third such themed sale.

img_7-3.jpg

Restituted Cranach shines in New York at Christie's auction

23 April 2018

A restituted portrait of a German electoral prince by Lucas Cranach the Elder, missing for nearly 80 years, has sold for $6.6m (£4.7m).

img_44-4.jpg

Costume sale suits Pennsylvania auction house

23 April 2018

Helen Larson was a keen collector of costume, especially pieces with historical associations. She spent half a century building up a collection that encompassed early costume, couture and pieces with historical or celebrity provenance, helped by her friend Doris Langley Moore who founded the Costume Museum in Bath.

News

Categories