The 2011 Australian Art Auction Market

Major Changes and Highlights of the Art Auction Industry in 2011

• Total value art sold by auction in Australia in 2011 was $99.9 million a decrease of 3.2% over the 2010 total of $103.3 milion, and well below the record annual total of $175.6 million achieved in 2007.
• Sales of works by Australian artists declined 4.6% to $82.8 million. Sales of works by Aboriginal artists decreased for the fourth consecutive year from $10.1 million to $8.2 million, also well below the record total of $26.4 million set in 2007.
• Top price achieved for 2011 was $1,860,000 (IBP) for Brett Whiteley's Washing the Salt Off 1, 1985. Brett Whiteley, Russell Drysdale and Fred Williams each had two works in the top 10 prices for works by Australian artists.
• In 2011, nine works by Australian artists sold for over $1 million; an increase over the seven works sold for over $1 million in 2010.
• The top price for a work by an Australian Aboriginal artist was $290,727 (IBP) for Maggie Watson Napangardi's, Digging Stick Dreaming, 1995, which does not rank in the historical list of top ten prices for Aboriginal artists.
• In 2011, nine works by Australian artists sold for over $1 million; an increase over the seven works sold for over $1 million in 2010.
• Total number of works sold in 2011 was 11,258 compared with 13,752 in 2010, a decrease of 18.1% with the clearance rate (percent sold by number) of 68.8% changing only marginally from the 69.9% clearance rate recorded in 2010.
• Menzies Art Brands was the market leader in terms of sales with $35.9 million dollars (excluding subsidiaries Lawson-Menzies and Lawsons) followed by Sothebys with $16.2 million.
• Having commenced operation in Australia in 2010 with the sale of the Owston Collection, Bonham's held its first stand alone art sales, achieving $5.9 million in total.
• Tim Goodman, major shareholder in the company that owned the franchise to operate Sotheby's Australia sold his interest on December 31 2010, to a group of five shareholders, including former Vice Chairman, Geoffrey Smith, who is now chairman of SEAH, Gary Singer, CEO of Sotheby's Australia and Sam Cullen, who was a former director and equity holder in the Goodman operation over many years.
• However the sale did not include the 67% shareholding in Melbourne auction house Leonard Joel, and this was purchased in July 2011 by John Albrecht, the managing director of Leonard Joel.