Not only is it a record for Christie’s, but also for the art market. At a press conference today, Guillaume Cerutti, the auction house’s chief executive, mentioned the $8.4 billion in revenue the company brought in in 2022. “We face a difficult macro situation, but these numbers demonstrate the art market’s tenacity.”
Of the total, auction sales accounted for $7.2 billion and private sales for $1.2 billion. 85% of the 45,000 items sold through Christie’s.
Christie’s only holds auctions for fine art and expensive things, while Sotheby’s auctions include a variety of sales, including real estate and vintage cars. This is how they prefer to conduct business, according to Cerutti.
Sales of artwork from the 20th and 21st centuries brought in a lot of money for the company. While classics and Asian art sales fell by 20%, sales of luxury products grew by 2%.
The word of the year in 2022 was collections. The record-breaking selling of Paul G. Allen brought in a large sum of money. It is a turning point for the philanthropic sector, the art world, and the art market. Christie’s hasn’t yet disclosed which organizations will profit from the sale, though.
Sales in the Americas increased by 73% in 2017 to reach $4.55 billion because of the popularity of single-owner art auctions. The fashion designer Hubert Givenchy’s creations contributed half of Christie’s France’s $500 million record-breaking revenue. Asia’s spending fell by 20% in comparison.
Asian collectors are crucial to the contemporary art market’s continued growth despite the recession. They made up 40% of buyers and spent 10% of all money spent on contemporary art globally in 2022. Asian art consumers frequently purchase works by modern artists including Matthew Wong, Adrian Ghenie, and Anna Weyant. In addition, 89% of customers purchased art online in 2022.
Buyers are seeking investments that are more assured as the market becomes less volatile, and guarantees grew by 86% in 2021. But since guarantees only make up a small portion of the market, they don’t appear to be a significant contributor to the high sell-through rate.
The “trillion dollar question” is how Christie’s Chief Operating Officer Ben Gore referred to what will happen to the company moving forward in 2023. He acknowledged the firm’s struggles with inflation, the Ukraine conflict, and other challenges, but asserted that Christie’s collections, curation, and excellent team will carry the business through.