ENDURING STRENGTH

Christie's American Art Specialist reflects on the state of the market

- Tylee Abbott

As 2024 ends and we move into 2025, we have a lot to be thankful for. For more than a decade now, through economic and political turbulence, the market for historic American art has continued to show enduring strength, and all signs point to that trend continuing. A big part of this is the high quality of the works available in this category across a wide range of styles, movements and genres, and the bedrock passion of the collectors who pursue them.

In the waning months of 2024, Christie’s saw this strength assert itself in the sub-genre of American impressionism. This is an area that has struggled somewhat over the past decade, but there is extraordinary quality to be found in American impressionist pictures and a tremendous value proposition. The art made by Americans who studied with and worked alongside some of the great names in French impressionism is attractive and important, moving and inspiring, and paints a vibrant picture of an era of change and energy.

Our dedicated off-season sale in October titled American Atmosphere: An Important Private Collection showed that this genre is resilient and appeals to a wide range of clients, both established and new. When the dust settled, the auction was 95 percent sold by lot and achieved 185 percent of the total low estimate. Impressively, over half of all bidders and buyers were new to the collecting category, with many coming to the sale from around the globe. Paintings at the high-end did extremely well, with the top lot of the sale, Louis Ritman’s Hollyhocks doubling its low estimate to sell for $403,200. Yet, we also had great success at the entry-level with collectors snapping up a fabulous array of pictures offered without reserve.