France Passes Landmark Restitution Law for Looted Art
Artnet News reported on 10 May 2026 that the Aspen Art Fair will return to Hotel Jerome from 29 July to 1 August 2026 for its third edition, featuring more than 35 exhibitors including Albertz Benda, Library Street Collective, and Monique Meloche, and marking the first fair under director Kelly Cornell. The roundup also previewed New York’s May auctions, with Sotheby’s estimating $690.4 million to $942.5 million across its marquee sales and naming Mark Rothko’s 1957 painting "Brown and Blacks in Reds" (from dealer Robert Mnuchin’s collection) as a top lot estimated at $70 million–$100 million for 14 May. Christie’s projected $1 billion to $1.5 billion across 769 lots beginning 18 May, including a 16-lot S.I. Newhouse sale estimated at $462 million and led by a 1948 Jackson Pollock drip painting estimated around $100 million. Phillips highlighted Claude Monet’s 1879 "La Route de Vétheuil, effet de neige" at $7 million–$10 million (guaranteed) for 19 May, while Bonhams listed Yoshitomo Nara’s 2012 "Words Mean Nothing at All" at $4 million–$6 million for 20 May at its new U.S. flagship at 111 West 57th Street.
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This story was covered in Restitution Reckonings and a $2.5bn Auction Frenzy