“Femme Assise robe Bleue” by Pablo Picasso

There is some cheer for the global art market at the start of the New Year. Christie’s has reported a huge increase in sales. Expanding buyer base has driven a record year at Christie’s with art sales accounting for £4.5 billion, up by 16 per cent. Of these, new buyers are growing at the rate of 30 per cent annually and account for at least 22 per cent of all global sales.

Interestingly, auction sales continue to be the primary driver of activity with robust global growth of 15% year-on-year at £3.77 billion. Christie’s sold 58 works of art for over $10 million each during 2013 and achieved seven of the top 10 artwork prices in the auction market. In total, 731 lots were sold for over $1 million each during the year. While private sales grew 20% and amounted to £760.5 million, the online-only sales totalled £13.2 million ($20.8 million). The latter was the key driver for attracting new buyers and increasing global accessibility to acquiring authenticated art and luxury goods.

“Mahishasur” by Tyeb Mehta

Forty-five percent of buyers on the online platform were new to Christie’s, with registrants from over 100 countries. The top price achieved in any online-only sale was $387,750 for an original Apple computer, now known as the Apple-1.

In collecting categories, post-War and contemporary art have held their dominant position – with total sales of £1.3 billion, up 29% since last year. Notably in New York where Christie’s Fall evening sale realized $691.6 million, the highest total ever in the history of the art market. Christie’s also had a record year in luxury goods sales with jewellery sales amounting to £432 million. Demand for Asian Art continued, increasing 44% year-on-year to £599 million Other collecting categories that grew in 2013 included Arts of the Americas, which realised £121.4 million, Prints, which realised £51.8 million.

“Saying Grace” by Norman Rockwell

The spectacular growth has been aided by the auction houses’ aggressive expansion into India and China. Asia, in fact, has seen sales increase by a staggering 44 per cent. Steven P. Murphy, Chief Executive Officer, Christie’s, says about the growth, “With 16% sales growth and 30% new buyers coming in 2013, Christie’s has succeeded again by focusing on the art and connecting it to the ever-increasing audience of enthusiasts and collectors. We continue to see a surge in interest across categories and across the globe, fuelled in large part by the online platform enabling greater connectivity between buyers, sellers and the objects of their pursuit. Our strategy to invest in new markets such as China, new channels such as Private Sales and online sales, and to build on our position at the leading auction house, has enabled Christie’s to grow.”

In 2014, Christie’s is likely to focus on Renaissance art with a special auction in New York, which will be devoted to the literary and artistic achievements of this golden age of European history led by The Rothschild Prayerbook, a masterpiece of Renaissance art featuring lavish and extensive illustrations by celebrated artists of the period.

“Abstraktes Bild” by Gerhard Richter

London will see a series of exhibitions and auctions dedicated to Impressionist & Modern Art, The Art of the Surreal, and Post-War & Contemporary Art, from 30 January to 20 February. The Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Sale in February will be led by Femme au costume turc dans un fauteuil, a 1955 work by Pablo Picasso, which comes to the market for the first time in over 55 years (estimate: £15 – £20 million). The auction will also feature works from exceptional collections, including Modern Masters: Works from an Important Private Swiss Collection, an historic group of 22 works of art assembled by a private Swiss couple. Miró – Seven Decades of His Art, an outstanding collection of 85 works showcasing seven decades of Joan Miró’s rich and dynamic career, will be offered across three sales.