Sotheby’s New York Spring Season Reaches $908.6 Million With Record-Breaking Art Sales

It’s no secret that investment-grade collectibles are fueling fascination for 2026, with world-renowned auction houses reporting record-breaking sales figures, whether it be exclusive exotic and classic cars or rare and prestigious works of art. Sotheby’s is celebrating a monumental end to its coveted New York Spring Season with an impressive $908.6 million in sales, hosted over the past two weeks from its new headquarters at the Breuer building on Madison Avenue. The nine-figure sales results were achieved through Sotheby’s two main art categories throughout the month of May, including Now & Contemporary (14th-15th) and Modern (19th-20th).

Jean-Michel Basquiat — Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown)

Contemporary Auction Highlights

1. Jean-Michel Basquiat — Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown) — Sold for $52,717,500
2. Willem de Kooning — Untitled III — Sold for $26,000,000
3. Andy Warhol — Brigitte Bardot — Sold for $24,830,000
4. Mark Rothko — Untitled — Sold for $16,465,000
5. Lucio Fontana — Concetto spaziale, Il cielo di Venezia — Sold for $16,492,500
6. Roy Lichtenstein — Half Face with Collar — Sold for $12,985,000
7. Agnes Martin — Untitled #10 — Sold for $8,904,000
8. David Hockney — The Valley, Mountains in Var (Near La Garde Freinet) — Sold for $6,586,000
9. Alexander Calder — Mobile Blanc — Sold for $8,425,000
10. Joan Mitchell — Loom II — Sold for $7,806,000

Sotheby’s auctions served as a massive showcase for modern and contemporary art, bringing together some of the biggest artistic names of the past century alongside a new generation of rising talent. Covering around 80 years of art, the sales featured everything from Postwar abstract works and colorful Pop Art pieces to Minimalist creations and newer contemporary works. Leading the season was Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown), along with major works from artists like Mark Rothko, Andy Warhol, Lucio Fontana, Roy Lichtenstein, and Alexander Calder. The sale also featured pieces from the Jean and Terry de Gunzburg collection, curating a lineup with museum-quality works and some of the most recognizable names in art history.

Henri Matisse — La Chaise lorraine

Modern Auction Highlights

1. Henri Matisse — La Chaise lorraine — Sold for $48,405,000
2. Pablo Picasso — Arlequin (Buste) — Sold for $42,640,000
3. Vincent van Gogh — La Moisson en Provence — Sold for $29,430,000
4. Alberto Giacometti — La Clairière (Composition avec neuf figures) — Sold for $23,105,000
5. Henri Matisse — La Séance du matin — Sold for $20,000,000
   
6. Wassily Kandinsky — Rote Tiefe (Red Depth) — Sold for $14,480,000
7. Auguste Rodin — Penseur, Taille de la Porte dit "Moyen Modèle" — No final sale price listed
8. Pierre-Auguste Renoir — Baigneuse assise sur un rocher — Sold for $8,660,000
9. Georgia O'Keeffe — Inside Clam Shell — Sold for $8,904,000
10. Pablo Picasso — Tête de femme sur fond jaune — Sold for $7,745,000

The Modern Day auction offered a look at how art evolved over more than a century, moving from Impressionist works into experimental styles that changed the art world. Instead of focusing on one specific movement or region, the auction showed how artists from Europe and the Americas pushed boundaries, borrowed ideas, and influenced one another across generations. The lineup included well-known names like René Magritte, Pablo Picasso, Georgia O’Keeffe, Edward Hopper, Joan Miró, and Salvador Dalí, along with works from notable private collections assembled by collectors like Robert Mnuchin and Adele and Enrico Donati.