The 2012 Australian Art Auction Market

Prior Year Australian Art Auction market reviews: 2011 2010 2009 2008

Review of the Australian Art Auction market for 2012

• Total value art sold by auction in Australia in 2012 was $95.08 million (including buyers premium), a decrease of 4.8% over the 2011 total of $99.9 million, and well below the record annual total of $175.6 million achieved in 2007.
• Sales of works by Australian artists declined again from $82.8 million to $81.3 million. Sales of works by Aboriginal artists were virtually steady between 2011 and 2012 at $8.2 million, also well below the record total of $26.4 million set in 2007.
• Top price achieved for 2012 was $2,520,000 (IBP) for Arthur Streeton's "Settler's Camp", 1888. There were three works by Brett Whiteley in the top ten prices for works by Australian artists, 2012 and two works by Arthur Boyd.
• In 2012, six works by Australian artists sold for over $1 million; a decrease over the nine works that sold for over $1 million in 2011. In 2012, a further four works sold for over $900,000.
• The top price for a work by an Australian Aboriginal artist was $260,727 (IBP) for Lin Onus's, Barmah Forest, c1993. Neither this sale, or the sale of Maggie Watson Napangardi's, Digging Stick Dreaming, 1995, the top price for a work by an Australian Aboriginal artist in 2011, rank in the historical list of top ten prices for Aboriginal artists.
• Total number of works sold in 2012 was 10,397 compared with 11,258 in 2011, a decrease of 7.6%, with the clearance rate (percent sold by number) of 66% down from the 69% clearance rate recorded in 2011.
• For the 4th consecutive year, Menzies Art Brands was the market leader in auction sales value with $29.9 million dollars (excluding subsidiaries Lawson-Menzies and Lawsons), down from $35.9 million in 2011. Second place went to Sotheby's Australia with auction sales of $21.0 million.
• In mid-December 2012 Sotheby's Australia moved from their premises of 20 years in High Street Armadale, to temporary premises at Anzac House at 4-6 Collins Street, whilst awaiting completion of their new premises at level 7 and 8 of a new building at 41 Exhibition Street, Melbourne, reportedly purchased for $4.2 million.
• On December 31, Sotheby's Australia announced the closure of its Bay East Auctions, (Sydney) branch which had operating for over 20 years selling lower priced books and art, so that the company can concentrate on its core market.