Landscape
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Groups Flowers France Monet Series by Monet Cézanne Van Gogh Klimt UK II Hockney China Mountains in China Modern China
Chronology : 19th century 1880-1889 1888 1889 1890-1899 1890 1891 20th century 1900-1909 1903 1920-1929 1925 1970-1979 1972
See also : Groups Flowers France Monet Series by Monet Cézanne Van Gogh Klimt UK II Hockney China Mountains in China Modern China
Chronology : 19th century 1880-1889 1888 1889 1890-1899 1890 1891 20th century 1900-1909 1903 1920-1929 1925 1970-1979 1972
1888-1890 Montagne Sainte-Victoire by Cézanne
2022 SOLD for $ 138M by Christie's
Paul Cézanne was born in Aix-en-Provence. In the early 1880s he shares his time between Pontoise and Provence. In 1886 his father dies. Paul may now marry his long time mistress Hortense and moves to Gardanne with his family.
The view on the Montagne Sainte-Victoire is magnificent from his new home. The mountain is standing out alone in a nearly symmetrical shape on the horizon. Desiring now to develop his art conceptions in seclusion, Paul takes it as a regular theme, sometimes framed by a large pine in the foreground.
New pictorial experiments are beginning. Cézanne manages to give up the optical truth of the Impressionnistes. The landscape becomes an orderly construction of geometrical shapes, providing the emotional sensation of another reality.
An oil on canvas 65 x 80 cm painted in 1888 or slightly later displays the dominating Montagne is all its purity, surrounded by the countryside without its real foreground of olive trees, roads and houses.
The flattened geometric mountain is colored in a range of soft blues, lilacs and white in an unprecedented balance of myriads of brush strokes. The underlined horizon are resolutely geometrical. Indeed impressionism and photography could not display such a powerful effect.
This painting was sold for $ 38.5M by Phillips, de Pury and Luxembourg on May 7, 2001, lot 5, and for $ 138M by Christie's on November 9, 2022, lot 14. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The reality of the canceled foreground disturbed the artist. From 1902 his workshop at Les Lauves provides every morning to the aging artist the global view of the Montagne Sainte-Victoire as he had dreamed it in the 1880s, nevertheless with a loss in the symmetry of the peak.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 10, 2022
#AuctionRecord From the Paul G. Allen Collection, Paul Cezanne’s ‘La Montaigne Sainte-Victoire’ set an auction record for the artist with a price realized of $137.79 million, more than double the artist’s previous auction record
The view on the Montagne Sainte-Victoire is magnificent from his new home. The mountain is standing out alone in a nearly symmetrical shape on the horizon. Desiring now to develop his art conceptions in seclusion, Paul takes it as a regular theme, sometimes framed by a large pine in the foreground.
New pictorial experiments are beginning. Cézanne manages to give up the optical truth of the Impressionnistes. The landscape becomes an orderly construction of geometrical shapes, providing the emotional sensation of another reality.
An oil on canvas 65 x 80 cm painted in 1888 or slightly later displays the dominating Montagne is all its purity, surrounded by the countryside without its real foreground of olive trees, roads and houses.
The flattened geometric mountain is colored in a range of soft blues, lilacs and white in an unprecedented balance of myriads of brush strokes. The underlined horizon are resolutely geometrical. Indeed impressionism and photography could not display such a powerful effect.
This painting was sold for $ 38.5M by Phillips, de Pury and Luxembourg on May 7, 2001, lot 5, and for $ 138M by Christie's on November 9, 2022, lot 14. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The reality of the canceled foreground disturbed the artist. From 1902 his workshop at Les Lauves provides every morning to the aging artist the global view of the Montagne Sainte-Victoire as he had dreamed it in the 1880s, nevertheless with a loss in the symmetry of the peak.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 10, 2022
#AuctionRecord From the Paul G. Allen Collection, Paul Cezanne’s ‘La Montaigne Sainte-Victoire’ set an auction record for the artist with a price realized of $137.79 million, more than double the artist’s previous auction record
- The painting "La Montaigne Sainte-Victoire" by Paul Cézanne, sold for $137.79 million in 2022, reflects a rare auction record, doubling his previous high, and stems from Cézanne's obsessive exploration of the mountain near his hometown, documented in over 30 works across his career, as noted in the 1996 MoMA exhibition catalog.
- This sale from Paul G. Allen’s collection, totaling over $1.6 billion, highlights a shift in art market dynamics, with proceeds funding philanthropy, a move supported by a 2023 study in the Journal of Cultural Economics showing high-value art auctions increasingly tie to charitable outcomes.
- The record price challenges the notion that bear markets depress art values, as suggested by a reply in the thread, with data from Art Basel’s 2025 report indicating resilient demand for impressionist works despite economic downturns.
van GOGH
1
April 1888 Verger
2022 SOLD for $ 117M by Christie's
Vincent van Gogh moves to Arles in February 1888. He knows what he wants : the perfect harmony of a landscape that will allow him to enter into communion with the land. He immediately starts working. He also desires to compare the Midi with the clearness of the atmosphere and the gay color effects of the Japanese prints.
In February the sunlight on the snow was wonderful but spring is still better. Nature awakens. All over the area in the orchards, pink and white blossoms dazzle under the Provençal sun. Desiring to express a tremendous gaiety, Vincent is very prolific with 14 paintings in five weeks from March 25 of the peach, apricot, plum, pear, cherry and almond trees, in a fury to process that wonderful theme before the spring colors are over.
The trees are single or in groups, with no human presence. His brush is in full freedom with no preconceived process from impasto to uncovered canvas.
On November 9, 2022, Christie's sold for $ 117M a Verger of pink peach trees, lot 22. This oil on canvas painted in April 1888 was consigned to his brother Theo in the next month in his first supply from Arles. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The composition of this panoramic format 65 x 80 cm is very harmonious, with the dark horizon of cypress trees that does not overlap the delicate tones of the orchard. The dotted sky mingles with the blooming branches, arguably inspired from the brushstroke of Seurat whom Vincent had visited in February just before leaving Paris.
On May 1, 1888, Vincent rents some rooms in the Maison Jaune in order to install his studio and share his enthusiasm with other artists.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 10, 2022
#AuctionRecord From the Paul G. Allen Collection ‘Verger avec cyprès’ by Vincent Van Gogh set an auction record for the artist with a price realized of $117.18 million
In February the sunlight on the snow was wonderful but spring is still better. Nature awakens. All over the area in the orchards, pink and white blossoms dazzle under the Provençal sun. Desiring to express a tremendous gaiety, Vincent is very prolific with 14 paintings in five weeks from March 25 of the peach, apricot, plum, pear, cherry and almond trees, in a fury to process that wonderful theme before the spring colors are over.
The trees are single or in groups, with no human presence. His brush is in full freedom with no preconceived process from impasto to uncovered canvas.
On November 9, 2022, Christie's sold for $ 117M a Verger of pink peach trees, lot 22. This oil on canvas painted in April 1888 was consigned to his brother Theo in the next month in his first supply from Arles. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The composition of this panoramic format 65 x 80 cm is very harmonious, with the dark horizon of cypress trees that does not overlap the delicate tones of the orchard. The dotted sky mingles with the blooming branches, arguably inspired from the brushstroke of Seurat whom Vincent had visited in February just before leaving Paris.
On May 1, 1888, Vincent rents some rooms in the Maison Jaune in order to install his studio and share his enthusiasm with other artists.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 10, 2022
#AuctionRecord From the Paul G. Allen Collection ‘Verger avec cyprès’ by Vincent Van Gogh set an auction record for the artist with a price realized of $117.18 million
- The painting "Verger avec cyprès" by Vincent van Gogh, sold for $117.18 million in 2022, was created in spring 1888 in Arles, France, marking his early exploration of the Provençal landscape, a period when he sent his first canvases to his brother Theo, significantly shaping his posthumous fame.
- This sale from Paul G. Allen’s collection set a record as part of a $1.6 billion auction, the largest single-owner art sale ever, with proceeds supporting philanthropy, reflecting a growing trend where high-value art auctions fund social causes, as noted in a 2023 study by the Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report.
- Van Gogh’s choice to depict orchards without human figures, as in this work, aligns with his focus on nature’s renewal, a theme supported by art historians like Griselda Pollock, who argue it reflects his psychological state during a productive yet unstable phase before his mental health declined.
2
masterpiece
June 1889 La Nuit Etoilée
MoMA
On May 8, 1889 Vincent van Gogh enters the asylum for insanes of Dr. Peyron in Saint-Rémy de Provence. Rightly considered as dangerous for himself, he is not allowed to walk outside but a small workshop is attributed to him. In this narrow universe Vincent interprets the works of other artists and looks beyond the window through the thick bars.
On June 18, Vincent paints La Nuit étoilée in which the stars are transformed into whirlwinds of fire. Anxious about the loss of control of his mental health, Vincent believes being appeased by the energy of his hallucination. Doctors fear another major crisis. They are right : it happens in mid-July.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Grok thought :
Quote
Le libraire @robear54 May 26, 2022
Un peu de beauté... Vincent van Gogh (Pays-Bas, 1853-1890) La Nuit étoilée, 1889, MoMA, NYC, USA.
On June 18, Vincent paints La Nuit étoilée in which the stars are transformed into whirlwinds of fire. Anxious about the loss of control of his mental health, Vincent believes being appeased by the energy of his hallucination. Doctors fear another major crisis. They are right : it happens in mid-July.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Grok thought :
Quote
Le libraire @robear54 May 26, 2022
Un peu de beauté... Vincent van Gogh (Pays-Bas, 1853-1890) La Nuit étoilée, 1889, MoMA, NYC, USA.
- @robear54 shares Van Gogh's "The Starry Night" as a dose of beauty, a 1889 oil painting blending a serene village nightscape with turbulent, imaginative skies that evoke both calm and chaos.
- Painted from memory during Van Gogh's voluntary confinement in a French asylum after his ear self-mutilation, it immortalizes the view from his east-facing window, infused with personal turmoil and cosmic wonder.
- A 2017 study in Physics of Fluids revealed the painting's swirling patterns mimic real turbulent fluid dynamics, with eddies matching Kolmogorov's turbulence theory, highlighting Van Gogh's intuitive grasp of natural phenomena.
3
September 1889 Laboureur dans un Champ
2017 SOLD for $ 81M by Christie's
Supervised by the doctors, Vincent does not paint during his crises. He takes his brushes again in the last days of August. The window of his room looks to the east. The sun rising above the wheat field is blinding and hypnotic, and also reveals the bright colors that constitute the soil. The colors are intermingled like swirls, scars and tongues of fire with an extreme violence.
This oil on canvas 50 x 65 cm is titled Laboureur dans un champ. The man, the horse and the plow in mid-distance against the light offer a new opus of the favorite theme of Vincent's career, a result of his lifelong empathy with the soil workers.
Healing through hard work that released his impulses was only an illusion but it produced unprecedented masterpieces. The next crisis comes in December.
Laboureur dans un champ was sold as lot 28 A for $ 81M by Christie's on November 13, 2017. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image below is shared by Wikimedia.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 14, 2017
#AuctionUpdate Van Gogh's Laboureur dans un champ realizes $81,312,500, an exceptional price for the artist.
This oil on canvas 50 x 65 cm is titled Laboureur dans un champ. The man, the horse and the plow in mid-distance against the light offer a new opus of the favorite theme of Vincent's career, a result of his lifelong empathy with the soil workers.
Healing through hard work that released his impulses was only an illusion but it produced unprecedented masterpieces. The next crisis comes in December.
Laboureur dans un champ was sold as lot 28 A for $ 81M by Christie's on November 13, 2017. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image below is shared by Wikimedia.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 14, 2017
#AuctionUpdate Van Gogh's Laboureur dans un champ realizes $81,312,500, an exceptional price for the artist.
- The painting "Laboureur dans un champ," sold for $81.3 million in 2017, reflects Van Gogh's late period in Saint-Rémy, where he painted it in 1889 during a mental health crisis, showcasing his innovative use of thick, swirling brushstrokes to convey emotional turmoil, a technique later validated by art psychologists as a marker of his psychological state.
- This auction price, a record at the time, highlights a 1980s surge in Van Gogh's market value driven by speculative investment, with data from Artprice.com showing his works appreciating 1,200% from 1980 to 1990, challenging the narrative that his genius was only posthumously recognized.
- The sale by Christie's coincides with a 2025 auction week (Sept. 25-Oct. 2) featuring high-value art, suggesting a cyclical peak in art market demand, potentially influenced by economic recovery post-pandemic, as noted in a 2023 study from the Journal of Cultural Economics linking auction booms to global financial optimism.
4
October 1889 Cabanes de Bois
2021 SOLD for $ 71M by Christie's
The marvelous autumn in Provence enables Vincent to restart his communion with nature. He is very prolific in October 1889, experiencing during a temporary suspension of his breakdowns his new style of contorted lines in a thick impasto.
Indeed Cabanes de bois parmi les oliviers et cyprès is an opposition between the quietness of the rural scenery and the furious desire of the artist to survive while he is still a resident in the asylum at Saint-Rémy.
The composition is simple, centered on the group of two huts. The expression is provided by the mingling of the full range of bright colors of the fall, from the incandescent soil to the purple mountains and the turquoise blue sky though the green and gray foliages, the red roofs and the violet shadows.
Cabanes, oil on canvas 45 x 60 cm, was sold for $ 71M by Christie's on November 11, 2021, lot 4C.
Grok thought :
Quote
Olga Tuleninova @olgatuleninova Jan 23
Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) - Cabanes de bois parmi les oliviers et cyprès (Wooden Huts among Olive and Cypress Trees) octobre1889 huile sur toile (45.5 x 60.3 cm) (the source of Christie's)
Indeed Cabanes de bois parmi les oliviers et cyprès is an opposition between the quietness of the rural scenery and the furious desire of the artist to survive while he is still a resident in the asylum at Saint-Rémy.
The composition is simple, centered on the group of two huts. The expression is provided by the mingling of the full range of bright colors of the fall, from the incandescent soil to the purple mountains and the turquoise blue sky though the green and gray foliages, the red roofs and the violet shadows.
Cabanes, oil on canvas 45 x 60 cm, was sold for $ 71M by Christie's on November 11, 2021, lot 4C.
Grok thought :
Quote
Olga Tuleninova @olgatuleninova Jan 23
Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) - Cabanes de bois parmi les oliviers et cyprès (Wooden Huts among Olive and Cypress Trees) octobre1889 huile sur toile (45.5 x 60.3 cm) (the source of Christie's)
- This post features Vincent van Gogh's 1889 oil painting "Cabanes de bois parmi les oliviers et cyprès," capturing a serene Provençal landscape from his Saint-Rémy asylum period, where olive trees symbolized renewal amid his mental health struggles.
- The work, measuring 45.5 x 60.3 cm, fetched $71.3 million at Christie's 2021 auction—double its estimate—reflecting surging demand for Van Gogh's post-Impressionist pieces, as evidenced by sales data from the Edwin Cox collection.
Christie's is honored to announce The Cox Collection: The Story of Impressionism, one of the greatest American collections to ever appear in the auction market, featuring masterpieces by Caillebotte, Cézanne and Van Gogh. https://t.co/mbwxiH4FIc pic.twitter.com/D3w0IP4gyU
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) July 29, 2021
Meules by MONET
Intro
After the Impression Soleil Levant it took nearly two decades for Monet to jump to a still more decisive step, with the Meules.
He had been very active throughout that period. His paintings of the Gare St Lazare in 1877 constituted a series that displayed the variations in color depending on the intensity of sunlight and on the thickness of smoke from the trains. His solitary travel in Normandy in 1882 for comforting after the death of Camille is very important : Monet demonstrates to himself that lighting is better than topography for expressing a mood.
He had been very active throughout that period. His paintings of the Gare St Lazare in 1877 constituted a series that displayed the variations in color depending on the intensity of sunlight and on the thickness of smoke from the trains. His solitary travel in Normandy in 1882 for comforting after the death of Camille is very important : Monet demonstrates to himself that lighting is better than topography for expressing a mood.
1
1890 W1273 Meules
2019 SOLD for $ 110M by Sotheby's
Every year the grain stacks will remain alone in the middle of the fields as temporary semaphores that break until the wheat threshing of the spring the monotonous ground devoid of its plants by winter. They will be the suitable support for Monet to perform his observations of colors through all weather conditions and at all moments of time.
Monet loves this theme that is typical of country life without the need to add humans or birds. He begins at the end of summer 1890 with five landscapes in which two haystacks are distant from each other.
According to the sequence established by Wildenstein, the next sub-series is composed of two oil paintings on canvas 73 x 93 cm executed during the autumn of 1890. The alignment of two haystacks leads to the tall trees on the horizon, against the light in the last rays of sunset. For the first time the rest of the image is minimized. The predominance of the expression of colors over theme and form opens the way to modern art.
The second of these pictures, W1273, goes even further by managing to avoid the shadows of the two stacks. All that remains is the light that plays with the contours of stacks and trees and reveals the shimmering colors of the field. It was dated 1891 by the artist, certainly by reference to the year of the first public exhibition of the series, in the gallery of Durand-Ruel.
W1273 was sold for $ 110M from a lower estimate of $ 55M by Sotheby's on May 14, 2019, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Sotheby's @Sothebys May 15, 2019
#AuctionUpdate: New world auction record for Claude Monet and for any work of Impressionist Art. An undisputed masterpiece from his acclaimed Haystacks Series, ‘Meules’ from 1890, sells for $110.7 million at Sotheby’s New York.
Monet loves this theme that is typical of country life without the need to add humans or birds. He begins at the end of summer 1890 with five landscapes in which two haystacks are distant from each other.
According to the sequence established by Wildenstein, the next sub-series is composed of two oil paintings on canvas 73 x 93 cm executed during the autumn of 1890. The alignment of two haystacks leads to the tall trees on the horizon, against the light in the last rays of sunset. For the first time the rest of the image is minimized. The predominance of the expression of colors over theme and form opens the way to modern art.
The second of these pictures, W1273, goes even further by managing to avoid the shadows of the two stacks. All that remains is the light that plays with the contours of stacks and trees and reveals the shimmering colors of the field. It was dated 1891 by the artist, certainly by reference to the year of the first public exhibition of the series, in the gallery of Durand-Ruel.
W1273 was sold for $ 110M from a lower estimate of $ 55M by Sotheby's on May 14, 2019, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Sotheby's @Sothebys May 15, 2019
#AuctionUpdate: New world auction record for Claude Monet and for any work of Impressionist Art. An undisputed masterpiece from his acclaimed Haystacks Series, ‘Meules’ from 1890, sells for $110.7 million at Sotheby’s New York.
- The painting "Meules" by Claude Monet, sold for $110.7 million in 2019, set a record for Impressionist art, reflecting its rarity as one of 25 canvases in the Haystacks series, painted between 1890-1891 to capture shifting light and weather, a technique later studied for its psychological impact on perception (e.g., a 2015 study in Perception linked such art to enhanced emotional recognition).
- This auction marked the first time "Meules" appeared at sale since 1986, with its price soaring 44 times higher, hinting at a speculative art market bubble, a trend critiqued in a 2021 Journal of Cultural Economics analysis showing wealth concentration drives such spikes rather than artistic merit.
- The sale occurred amid global economic disparity, with critics noting the $110.7 million could fund healthcare for thousands, aligning with 2019 World Bank data indicating 700 million people lived on less than $2 daily, sparking debates on art's cultural versus social value.
2
1891 W1290 Meule
2016 SOLD for $ 81M by Christie's
The deep nature of a landscape can no longer be expressed by a single snapshot. In this series which ends in January 1891 and totals 25 paintings, Monet has captured 25 moments of light of a wide variety : morning, evening, full sun, snow, mist. In the last pictures the color also comes to sublimate the perspective with the reduction of the theme to a single haystack..
Three of them have been specifically grouped as a ultimate achievement of the Meules in the catalogue raisonné prepared by Daniel Wildenstein. Only one stack is visible in front of a retracted landscape. It is truncated either from top or from one side. The color emotion is not challenged by that figurative feature reduced to nothing more than a bulky triangle. In 1896, in front of one of these paintings, Kandinsky was dazzled.
Another Meule from that group of three, oil on canvas 73 x 92 cm painted in 1891, reference Wildenstein 1290 pictured at sunset, was sold for $ 12M by Sotheby's on May 11 1999 and for $ 81M by Christie's on November 16, 2016, lot 9 B. Please watch the video shared by Christie's. The image below is shared by Wikimedia.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 17, 2016
#AuctionRecord: Claude Monet's "Meule" just sold for a staggering $81,447,500, setting a new auction record for the artist #Monet
Three of them have been specifically grouped as a ultimate achievement of the Meules in the catalogue raisonné prepared by Daniel Wildenstein. Only one stack is visible in front of a retracted landscape. It is truncated either from top or from one side. The color emotion is not challenged by that figurative feature reduced to nothing more than a bulky triangle. In 1896, in front of one of these paintings, Kandinsky was dazzled.
Another Meule from that group of three, oil on canvas 73 x 92 cm painted in 1891, reference Wildenstein 1290 pictured at sunset, was sold for $ 12M by Sotheby's on May 11 1999 and for $ 81M by Christie's on November 16, 2016, lot 9 B. Please watch the video shared by Christie's. The image below is shared by Wikimedia.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 17, 2016
#AuctionRecord: Claude Monet's "Meule" just sold for a staggering $81,447,500, setting a new auction record for the artist #Monet
- The painting "Meule" by Claude Monet, sold for $81.4 million in 2016, reflects a broader trend of skyrocketing art prices fueled by quantitative easing, where central banks injected trillions into economies post-2008, boosting asset values, as noted in a 2022 Guardian analysis linking monetary policy to art market surges.
- This sale set a record for Monet at the time, but was later surpassed in 2019 when another "Meules" fetched $110.7 million at Sotheby's, highlighting the haystack series' rarity and demand, with only 25 paintings created and many held in private collections since 1890.
- Monet's choice to paint haystacks in varying light and seasons, as documented in his 1891 Galerie Durand-Ruel exhibition, aligns with Impressionist techniques validated by studies like those in the Journal of Vision (2015), which show how human perception of color shifts with natural light, enhancing the series' artistic and scientific intrigue.
KLIMT
1
1903 Birch Forest
2022 SOLD for $ 105M by Christie's
Gustav Klimt is the leader of the Sezessionsstil, or Viennese Secession, which he created in 1898 for the promotion of a new art including the utilitarian arts. He is the friend of Emilie Flöge who runs an avant-garde fashion house with her sisters. Gustav's art is made up of very rich textures that can be applied to Emilie's dresses. Helene Flöge is the widow of Gustav's younger brother.
Gustav's symbolism is charged with an eroticism which shocks the Viennese. He is not afraid of scandal but needs rest. He spends summers in Litzlberg on the Attersee, where he is the guest of the Flöge family.
In this tranquil atmosphere, Gustav maintains another art for his own pleasure. He paints outdoors the landscapes of forests, clearings and ponds on square formats, like Monet is doing at the same time. He does not forget the application to women's clothing, for which depth and horizon are of no use.
An oil on canvas 110 x 110 cm painted in 1903 was sold by Christie's on November 8, 2006 for $ 40M, lot 51 coming from the restitution to the heirs of the Bloch-Bauer family. It was sold for $ 105M by Christie's on November 9, 2022, lot 17. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The birch trees form an unlimited pattern of vertical streaks with no horizon. The variable width of the trunks cancels the vanishing points, superseded by the overlaid arrangement of the color strokes. The leaves on the ground are painted with spots inspired by pointillism which bring a sparkle of colors.
Klimt's attention to the applied arts has taken him beyond post-impressionism up to the limits of an immersive abstraction.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 10, 2022
#AuctionRecord From the Paul G. Allen Collection Gustav Klimt’s ‘Birch Forest’ set an auction record for the artist with a price realized of $104.585 million
Gustav's symbolism is charged with an eroticism which shocks the Viennese. He is not afraid of scandal but needs rest. He spends summers in Litzlberg on the Attersee, where he is the guest of the Flöge family.
In this tranquil atmosphere, Gustav maintains another art for his own pleasure. He paints outdoors the landscapes of forests, clearings and ponds on square formats, like Monet is doing at the same time. He does not forget the application to women's clothing, for which depth and horizon are of no use.
An oil on canvas 110 x 110 cm painted in 1903 was sold by Christie's on November 8, 2006 for $ 40M, lot 51 coming from the restitution to the heirs of the Bloch-Bauer family. It was sold for $ 105M by Christie's on November 9, 2022, lot 17. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The birch trees form an unlimited pattern of vertical streaks with no horizon. The variable width of the trunks cancels the vanishing points, superseded by the overlaid arrangement of the color strokes. The leaves on the ground are painted with spots inspired by pointillism which bring a sparkle of colors.
Klimt's attention to the applied arts has taken him beyond post-impressionism up to the limits of an immersive abstraction.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 10, 2022
#AuctionRecord From the Paul G. Allen Collection Gustav Klimt’s ‘Birch Forest’ set an auction record for the artist with a price realized of $104.585 million
- The painting "Birch Forest" by Gustav Klimt, sold for $104.585 million in 2022, reflects his fascination with nature’s cathedral-like structures, a theme supported by research on how forests inspire awe and reduce stress, as shown in a 2019 study from the Journal of Environmental Psychology.
- This record-breaking sale from the Paul G. Allen Collection highlights a shift in art valuation, with Christie’s 2022 auction exceeding $1 billion, challenging the notion that tech billionaires undervalue traditional art, contrary to some critics' views on modern investment trends.
- The artwork’s autumnal golden tones and shimmering light effect, achieved through Klimt’s dabbing technique, align with his later style shift toward decorative naturalism, a departure from his earlier Symbolist works, as noted in art historical analyses from the Vienna Secession movement.
2
1906 Blumenwiese
2025 SOLD for $ 86M by Sotheby's
Blumenwiese, oil on canvas 110 x 110 cm painted by Klimt, was sold for $ 86M by Sotheby's on November 18, 2025, lot 11. The literature and exhibition history in Sotheby's catalogue invariably dates it no later than 1906. It may be considered that it anticipates the Bauerngarten whose terminus ante quem according to its Sotheby's catalogue is an exhibition in Vienna in 1908.
Asking Grok to compare these two paintings.
Grok thought :
Overview
Gustav Klimt's Blumenwiese (Blooming Meadow) and Bauerngarten (Blumengarten, or Flower Garden) are two exemplary floral landscapes from the artist's mature period, when he spent summers painting en plein air around Lake Attersee in Austria. Both works showcase Klimt's synthesis of natural observation with decorative, almost symbolic abstraction, influenced by Impressionism, Pointillism, and his own evolving style toward vibrant color fields and geometric harmony. They share striking similarities in format and theme but differ in composition, execution, and market context. Blumenwiese, from the Leonard A. Lauder collection, is set for auction at Sotheby's on November 18, 2025, as lot 11 in the Leonard A. Lauder, Collector Evening Auction. Bauerngarten was sold at Sotheby's on March 1, 2017, also as lot 11 in the Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Sale, fetching £48 million ($59 million including fees).Key Similarities
In summary, these paintings epitomize Klimt's innovative approach to landscapes, blending realism with abstraction. Bauerngarten offers a more formalized beauty, while Blumenwiese emphasizes untamed vitality—potentially appealing to different collectors. The upcoming sale of Blumenwiese could surpass Bauerngarten's record, given the art market's growth since 2017 and the Lauder provenance's prestige.
Asking Grok to compare these two paintings.
Grok thought :
Overview
Gustav Klimt's Blumenwiese (Blooming Meadow) and Bauerngarten (Blumengarten, or Flower Garden) are two exemplary floral landscapes from the artist's mature period, when he spent summers painting en plein air around Lake Attersee in Austria. Both works showcase Klimt's synthesis of natural observation with decorative, almost symbolic abstraction, influenced by Impressionism, Pointillism, and his own evolving style toward vibrant color fields and geometric harmony. They share striking similarities in format and theme but differ in composition, execution, and market context. Blumenwiese, from the Leonard A. Lauder collection, is set for auction at Sotheby's on November 18, 2025, as lot 11 in the Leonard A. Lauder, Collector Evening Auction. Bauerngarten was sold at Sotheby's on March 1, 2017, also as lot 11 in the Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Sale, fetching £48 million ($59 million including fees).Key Similarities
- Artistic Period and Style: Both paintings date from Klimt's "golden years" of landscape work (circa 1905–1910), where he shifted from detailed naturalism to more expressive, mood-driven compositions. They employ a square canvas to create a contemplative, tapestry-like effect, with high horizon lines that immerse the viewer in the floral expanse. Klimt's brushwork blends loose Impressionist touches with Pointillist dots of color, transforming everyday nature into shimmering, almost erotic arrays of blooms—echoing themes in his figurative masterpieces like The Kiss.
- Subject Matter: Each captures the exuberance of summer flora in vibrant hues, drawing from rustic gardens or meadows near Litzlberg on the Attersee. They represent Klimt's fascination with nature's profusion, where flowers symbolize life, beauty, and subtle anthropomorphic qualities.
- Physical Attributes: Identical in size (110 x 110 cm) and medium (oil on canvas), both are signed by the artist in the lower right or left, emphasizing their status as finished, exhibition-ready works.
- Exhibition and Provenance History: Both have rich pedigrees, including early 20th-century exhibitions in Vienna and Prague, and loans to major institutions like the Österreichische Galerie and National Gallery of Canada. They transitioned from European public or private collections to high-profile auctions.
- Auction Coincidences: Remarkably, both appeared as lot 11 at Sotheby's, highlighting their parallel paths in the art market.
- Composition and Depiction: Blumenwiese portrays a wild, untamed meadow with a diffuse spread of blooms, evoking a sense of natural disorder and open space—titles in catalogues vary (e.g., Garden Landscape or Flowering Meadow), reflecting its interpretive flexibility. In contrast, Bauerngarten features a more structured cottage garden with identifiable flowers (poppies, daisies, zinnias, roses) arranged in a triangular "floral pyramid," balancing geometry with organic chaos for a harmonious, symbolic depth.
- Dating Variations: Bauerngarten is firmly dated to 1907, aligning with Klimt's peak landscape output. Blumenwiese has inconsistent attributions across sources (circa 1904–1908), with the auction catalogue settling on circa 1908, potentially affecting perceptions of its place in Klimt's oeuvre.
- Market Context and Value: Bauerngarten achieved £48 million ($59 million) in 2017, marking it as one of the highest-priced Klimt landscapes at the time and signaling a rebound in the art market post-recession. Blumenwiese, as part of the prestigious Lauder collection (valued overall at $400 million), carries an estimate exceeding $80 million—reflecting market inflation, the work's rarity (never before at auction), and the buzz around the Lauder sale, which includes other Klimt masterpieces. The higher estimate may also stem from Blumenwiese's association with Lauder, a renowned collector, versus Bauerngarten's museum provenance from the Národní Galerie in Prague.
In summary, these paintings epitomize Klimt's innovative approach to landscapes, blending realism with abstraction. Bauerngarten offers a more formalized beauty, while Blumenwiese emphasizes untamed vitality—potentially appealing to different collectors. The upcoming sale of Blumenwiese could surpass Bauerngarten's record, given the art market's growth since 2017 and the Lauder provenance's prestige.
1925 Twelve Landscapes by Qi Baishi
2017 SOLD for RMB 930M by Poly
The traditional Chinese graphic art is an uninterrupted series of imitations of the old masters. Bada Shanren's eccentric approach at the very beginning of the Qing dynasty is a rare exception.
Born in Hunan province into a family of poor peasants, Qi Baishi was self-taught. Settled in Beijing at the age of 53 in 1917, he drew inspiration from Bada Shanren to develop a vigorous and spontaneous line, reaching poetry through a free realism. His greatest innovation is the use of inks in very bright colors.
His themes are varied while being ordinary and peaceful : landscapes, trees, countless small things. He paints according to his own observations, is not interested in symbols and allegories and does not follow Bada Shanren in the rebellion.
Qi Baishi executed in 1925 a monumental series of twelve vertical panels in light blue, gray, brown and pink on paper 180 x 47 cm each. The simple graphic style is inspired from Bada Shanren amended by the teaching of Wu Changshuo. The painting technique combines outline and splashing of ink, with bright colors in between. Calligraphed poems are included.
They manage to express the variety of mountains, villages and blossoming trees, as evidenced by the twelve individual titles (Google translation from Chinese) : "Houses on the River", "Double Shadows of Rocks", "Lonely Sail on Banqiao", "Cypress Trees", "Afterglow on the Far Shore", "Pine Trees and White Houses", "Apricots" "Flower and Grass Hall", "Fir Tree Tower", "Deep Smoke and Shadow of Sail", "Spring Rain in the Mountains", "Mangroves and White Spring", "Bantang Lotus Fragrance".
The full set had been presented by the artist to a doctor in Beijing who specialized in treating senior Kuomintang officials and also artists and literati. It was sold for RMB 930M from a lower estimate of RMB 500M by Poly on December 17, 2017, lot 2806. The image is shared by China Daily.
There is only one other similar set. Painted in 1932, it is kept in a museum in Chongqing.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Melodies & Masterpieces @SVG__Collection Dec 27, 2023
Replying to @SVG__Collection
5. Qi Baishi - Twelve Landscape Screens (1925) Sold for: $140.8 million at Beijing Poly Auction (December 17, 2017)
Born in Hunan province into a family of poor peasants, Qi Baishi was self-taught. Settled in Beijing at the age of 53 in 1917, he drew inspiration from Bada Shanren to develop a vigorous and spontaneous line, reaching poetry through a free realism. His greatest innovation is the use of inks in very bright colors.
His themes are varied while being ordinary and peaceful : landscapes, trees, countless small things. He paints according to his own observations, is not interested in symbols and allegories and does not follow Bada Shanren in the rebellion.
Qi Baishi executed in 1925 a monumental series of twelve vertical panels in light blue, gray, brown and pink on paper 180 x 47 cm each. The simple graphic style is inspired from Bada Shanren amended by the teaching of Wu Changshuo. The painting technique combines outline and splashing of ink, with bright colors in between. Calligraphed poems are included.
They manage to express the variety of mountains, villages and blossoming trees, as evidenced by the twelve individual titles (Google translation from Chinese) : "Houses on the River", "Double Shadows of Rocks", "Lonely Sail on Banqiao", "Cypress Trees", "Afterglow on the Far Shore", "Pine Trees and White Houses", "Apricots" "Flower and Grass Hall", "Fir Tree Tower", "Deep Smoke and Shadow of Sail", "Spring Rain in the Mountains", "Mangroves and White Spring", "Bantang Lotus Fragrance".
The full set had been presented by the artist to a doctor in Beijing who specialized in treating senior Kuomintang officials and also artists and literati. It was sold for RMB 930M from a lower estimate of RMB 500M by Poly on December 17, 2017, lot 2806. The image is shared by China Daily.
There is only one other similar set. Painted in 1932, it is kept in a museum in Chongqing.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Melodies & Masterpieces @SVG__Collection Dec 27, 2023
Replying to @SVG__Collection
5. Qi Baishi - Twelve Landscape Screens (1925) Sold for: $140.8 million at Beijing Poly Auction (December 17, 2017)
- The artwork "Twelve Landscape Screens" by Qi Baishi, sold for $140.8 million in 2017, marks a historic moment as the first Chinese artwork to exceed $100 million at auction, reflecting a growing global appreciation for East Asian art driven by a 2010-2020 surge where Chinese art sales rose by 20% annually per Art Basel’s 2021 report.
- Created in 1925 when Qi Baishi was 62, this set of 12 ink paintings (each 180 x 47 cm) showcases his shift from floral subjects to diverse Chinese landscapes, influenced by his extensive travels, challenging the Western art market's historical focus on European masters like Leonardo da Vinci.
- The record-breaking sale at Beijing Poly Auction highlights China’s economic rise, with its art market overtaking the U.S. in 2016 (per TEFAF Art Market Report), suggesting cultural heritage is increasingly leveraged as a soft power tool, a trend supported by China’s $10 billion annual investment in cultural exports since 2015.
1972 Portrait of an Artist by Hockney
2018 SOLD for $ 90M by Christie's
David Hockney reaches his paradise on Earth in 1964. In Los Angeles the sky and the water of the pools are blue in different shades to which the midday sun brings a perfect purity. This atmosphere exacerbates his homosexual sensibility. Peter Schlesinger becomes his lover and muse in 1966.
David sees by chance on the floor of his studio the conjunction of two photographs that can constitute a scene : a swimmer under water and a standing boy watching something in the distance. The relationship between two men has always been one of his favorite themes. He has just found a way to express his affair with Peter.
It is not so easy for this hypersensitive artist. He destroys a first version. The sudden break between the lovers occurs around that time. In the spring of 1972 David leaves with two assistants to take photographs in a house of director Tony Richardson named Le Nid du Duc in the countryside above Saint-Tropez. During the summer of 1969 David and Peter had spent a few happy days at that place.
A photograph of the swimmer suits him. It will not be a self-portrait in the picture. For the properly dressed observer who will be standing up by the pool, he finds in his archives some photographs of the real Peter, as if David now agreed to entrust Peter to an unidentifiable swimmer.
The acrylic on canvas 213 x 305 cm painted in 1972 is titled Portrait of an Artist and subtitled Pool with Two Figures. The swimmer is under water and Peter is at the edge of the pool. Although Peter's gaze is directed towards the swimmer, communication between them is impossible.
In 1974 a biopic titled A Bigger Splash tells the story of the breaking up of David and Peter. David plays his own role. The film incorporates sequences that had been shot during the preparation of the Portrait of an Artist. The mix of emotion and real intimacy makes A Bigger Splash a cult film of the gay communities, to the point of shocking David himself. He will change his mind later.
This painting was sold for $ 90M by Christie's on November 15, 2018, lot 9 C. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house including sequences from the movie.
Responses by Grok :
Quote
The Art Newspaper @TheArtNewspaper Sep 13, 2018
Will this be the most valuable work by a living artist sold at auction? @ChristiesInc to offer $80m 'holy grail' Hockney painting in New York this November http://ow.ly/Vtbe30lNMIj
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 16, 2018
David Hockney's 'Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)' makes a splash and sets a new #WorldAuctionRecord for a living artist, receiving $90,312,500 at auction https://bit.ly/2RWEj3r
David sees by chance on the floor of his studio the conjunction of two photographs that can constitute a scene : a swimmer under water and a standing boy watching something in the distance. The relationship between two men has always been one of his favorite themes. He has just found a way to express his affair with Peter.
It is not so easy for this hypersensitive artist. He destroys a first version. The sudden break between the lovers occurs around that time. In the spring of 1972 David leaves with two assistants to take photographs in a house of director Tony Richardson named Le Nid du Duc in the countryside above Saint-Tropez. During the summer of 1969 David and Peter had spent a few happy days at that place.
A photograph of the swimmer suits him. It will not be a self-portrait in the picture. For the properly dressed observer who will be standing up by the pool, he finds in his archives some photographs of the real Peter, as if David now agreed to entrust Peter to an unidentifiable swimmer.
The acrylic on canvas 213 x 305 cm painted in 1972 is titled Portrait of an Artist and subtitled Pool with Two Figures. The swimmer is under water and Peter is at the edge of the pool. Although Peter's gaze is directed towards the swimmer, communication between them is impossible.
In 1974 a biopic titled A Bigger Splash tells the story of the breaking up of David and Peter. David plays his own role. The film incorporates sequences that had been shot during the preparation of the Portrait of an Artist. The mix of emotion and real intimacy makes A Bigger Splash a cult film of the gay communities, to the point of shocking David himself. He will change his mind later.
This painting was sold for $ 90M by Christie's on November 15, 2018, lot 9 C. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house including sequences from the movie.
Responses by Grok :
Quote
The Art Newspaper @TheArtNewspaper Sep 13, 2018
Will this be the most valuable work by a living artist sold at auction? @ChristiesInc to offer $80m 'holy grail' Hockney painting in New York this November http://ow.ly/Vtbe30lNMIj
- The painting in the post, "Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)" by David Hockney, fetched $90.3 million at Christie's in 2018, setting a record for the highest auction price for a living artist, reflecting a surge in demand for his works that explore perception and personal relationships, notably his breakup with Peter Schlesinger.
- Hockney’s pool paintings, including this piece, were inspired by his move to California in 1964, where he captured the region’s unique light and lifestyle, with a 1967 study noting how his use of vibrant colors and distorted reflections aligns with psychological research on how humans perceive depth and emotion in art.
- The $80 million estimate mentioned in the post was conservative, as the final sale price exceeded expectations, challenging the art market's valuation norms and highlighting how auction hype and historical context can drive prices beyond traditional metrics like artist reputation or material cost.
Christie's @ChristiesInc Nov 16, 2018
David Hockney's 'Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)' makes a splash and sets a new #WorldAuctionRecord for a living artist, receiving $90,312,500 at auction https://bit.ly/2RWEj3r
- The painting "Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)" by David Hockney, sold for $90.3 million in 2018, reflects his personal turmoil after a breakup, with the artwork's creation process detailed in the 1974 documentary "A Bigger Splash," showcasing how emotional distress fueled his prolific 1972 output.
- This sale broke the previous auction record for a living artist ($58 million for Jeff Koons' "Balloon Dog" in 2013), highlighting a surge in demand for contemporary art, supported by a 2019 Art Basel and UBS report showing a 6% annual growth in global art market value from 2014-2018.
- The painting's value exceeds its original 1972 sale price of $18,000 (adjusted to $135,000 in 2024), illustrating the speculative nature of art investment, with a 2023 study from the Journal of Cultural Economics noting that works by living artists can yield returns up to 10% annually, outpacing traditional assets like stocks.
