Art Shows Resilience

Sotheby's sold Old Masters' paintings worth £13.3 million on Wednesday, close to the top end of expectations and bucking the recent art market trend of disappointing results. The top lot on the night was Frans van Mieris the Elder's "A Young Woman in a Red Jacket Feeding a Parrot," which fetched £3.6 million including a buyer's premium compared with pre-sale art estimates of £500-700,000 without the premium. Not far behind was a portrait on marble of 16th century Florentine banker Bindo Altoviti by Girolamo da Carpi, which went under the hammer for £3.1 million well above expectations of £200-300,000. "This evening's art sale showed enormous strength for quality paintings with attractive estimates that are fresh to the market," said Alex Bell, international head of Sotheby's old masters' department. "The results prove that the market for old master paintings, which enjoys a stable collecting base, is both robust and resilient." (For full source and full article click the Headline). Irish Art