This month’s blockbuster auctions in New York could bring upwards of $2.5bn

The Art Newspaper reported that New York’s May 2026 auctions at Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Phillips, and Bonhams are cumulatively estimated at $1.8 billion to $2.6 billion, as the market seeks to build on perceived recovery momentum from November sales. Sotheby’s alone projected $690.4 million to $942.5 million—its low estimate 70% higher than the May 2025 total hammer figure—and will sell dealer Robert Mnuchin’s collection in a dedicated evening sale at the Breuer Building on 14 May, led by Mark Rothko’s "Brown and Blacks in Reds" (1957) estimated at $70 million–$100 million. Christie’s forecast $1 billion to $1.5 billion overall and will offer works from dealer Marian Goodman’s collection, including Gerhard Richter’s "Kerze (Candle)" (1982) estimated at $35 million–$50 million in a 20 May sale at Rockefeller Center. Sotheby’s will also present 45 lots from the estate of Italian Surrealist Enrico Donati and Adele Donati, including Pablo Picasso’s "Arlequin (Buste)" (1909) in its Modern evening sale on 19 May, with expectations it could reach up to $40 million.

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