March 24 Leonid Shishkin Gallery held an auction « Theatre & Artist » . Let's talk briefly about the results of the auction.

It has become a tradition before bidding to ask the organizers about their expectations. This time, the traditional question of what will be particularly fight, I asked Leonid Shishkin. This question requires a clear business-like response - for this item because it is a rare thing, but for this one - because the price is good - and evasive enumeration of the top lots or even care to answer out of superstition, or, conversely, a lot of knowledge. This time the answer was much more interesting: "I do not know».

explanation for this response requires a small retreat.

idea of ​​an auction of works of theatrical subjects appeared after the opening of the London branch of the Shishkin Gallery in December 2011. Opened a branch on the principle that if the mountain will not come to Mohammed, then Mohammed goes to the mountain. It's no secret that a large number of our compatriots moved to London, and that among them there are many people who want to see in their walls and in the collections of works of art, that is, potential buyers on the art market. To be closer to their potential customers, the gallery and opened its platform in London. We started slowly to work, and it was found that the most in demand as the British, and Russian is the theater schedule. The English already has a culture of buying theater schedules, and seasons of the Diaghilev they know the names of our artists of the early twentieth century ( , , Benoit , etc.) are also at the hearing, it remains to add a range of works by contemporary artists, behind which a Russian school, plus a good range of 1.5-5 thousand pounds, the price offer - and the business went. Our former compatriots, too, have expressed interest, because for a little money you can and keep in touch with Russian culture, and literally the whole house uveshat beautiful interior painting and graphics.

This positive experience decided to extend in the opposite direction and conduct a thematic auction in Russia. But suddenly an unpleasant surprise: phoning clients, stumbled upon the answer that yes, they say, theatrical sketches are interested in, but not this time.

why the auction turned out in every sense of the pilot: on the one hand, needed to understand whether there is an interest of buyers and, if so, how much they are willing to pay for the work recognized in his professional community, but little-known art-market theater artists, on the other - to begin to develop this area of ​​work with the theater graphics.

While we talked, the people pulled up, a total of thirty people had gathered, which is usually two-thirds of them - a woman about thirty, which has an unusually long. To my surprise, I saw several well-known gallery owners, and this after the story about the weak interest of Leonid regulars was really quite unexpected. As it turned out of the questioning, one at the auction resulted in a desire to buy something, the other - just to see. All answered innocently enough, but too little too innocent ... And then to a certain point it looked quite respectable - they each bought several lots, but they were gathered together because of one thing only - the costume sketch of Potiphar's Wife, as reported catalog, the studio Leon Bakst . On what drew this sketch of participants and was held as a struggle for him, will talk about below.

Before you begin a story about the auction, I will say that many of the lots in the catalog have lost a huge part of their beauty. Especially in this sense, I note two works. First, sketch the scenery for the play "Monsieur Amelkar" of Alec Szasz (Lot 27) - a complex, multilayered, and at the same time, graphically clear thing. And secondly, sketch the scenery for the opera "La Traviata" (Lot 60), endowed by Yuri Ustinov effect of three-dimensional perception: a canvas stretched over a recorded thin transparent silk, too, carries the image draws together in the back of the stage and makes the image seen in the volume.

• Set design for the play "Monsieur Amelkar»
  Paper, pencil, watercolor, whitewash. 50 x 60
  Leonid Shishkin Gallery. 24.03.12. Lot 27
  Source: shishkin-gallery.ru
• Set design for the opera Verdi's" Traviata. " Act II. 1996
  Cardboard, mixed media. 77 x 60
  Leonid Shishkin Gallery. 24.03.12. Lot 60
  Source: shishkin-gallery.ru

Many of the names of the artists whose works are included in the catalog, not were familiar, even interested in the theater graphics, therefore, require some introductory remarks. Sometimes, in the absence of interest in the leading method used his favorite: "Your price". It was obvious that Leonid along the way assesses the situation in the room and adjusted, where possible, under the demand. The reverse side of this analytical work - a bit overcast maintenance trades, but there's nothing to be done: experiment and it is an experiment. Realizing that the auction is experimental and 53.8%of lots - of new authors, the organizers have gone on to make the starting prices are almost always much lower than the estimate. Price limits were quite democratic, and many purchases have occurred on the situation: when sitting in the hall heard a low price and saw that the work quality and interesting - raised their bids and to start buying, and even a small fight.

As a rule, of greater interest to analysts auctions are still known names, and those who are entering the market for the first time, pass almost unnoticed. But not this time, and here's why. Of the 133 lots offered for auction (more precisely, of the 132, because a lot is not had time to get from London to the auction hall, was removed), 71 belonged to the work of eight artists, theater, whose names are never heard at auction (at least If we trace the activities of the auction have not found): TN Spasolomskoy, M. Volkova, NP Antokolsky, Alik Sasu, S. Ustinov, IM Akimova, NV Parkhomenko A. Oparin. Of the 71 lots sold was 46 (ie 65%of lots), including 29 - to the hall, 15 - participants on the phones, and in two cases defeated parties that made the correspondence rate. If we compare these results with the outcome of the auction as a whole, it turns out is also quite convincing. So, all were sold at auction 65 lots, of which 46 (70.7%) - lots of these eight authors. Moreover, they also belong to the 29 (70.1%) of 41 lots, purchased a hall, 15 (88.2%) of 17 lots, inherited the participants on the phone, and 2 (28.6%) of 7 played an absentee bid.

Leonid Shishkin These results have yet to analyze, but, no doubt, the experiment can be considered a success.

If we talk about the trades, up to Lot number 10 went shopping to start or a step or two, but for lots 10, 11, 12, 14 and 15 (five of six watercolors Yulia Volkova) has traded in the six or seven steps. All of them are made in the traditional classical style, with works hung next to the Dobuzhinsky (a shining example for comparison) only cost 20-30 thousand rubles, not dollars.

Lots 17, 18, 19, Natalia Antokolsky was also called public interest, they are all sold at auction in 4-5 steps, including applicants - a few people in the hall and on the phone, two of the participants were in the hall, won the third phone.

As I said, the hall was very active, almost all bought something.

Big String artist Alika Szasz was also warmly received by those present: of the 11 works bought 8. Let the bargaining was short-lived, 2-3 pitch, though the final price of a small, but in this case, we can assume that all successful purchases: in such amounts as people got very high quality graphics, and I liked the scenery surround the sketch (50 x 60) were all sold out for 4000 rubles - as someone lucky.

Instead of the six lots Dobuzhinsky sold two - lots 34 and 35, both at half price from the low estimate, and without a struggle. Remained unsold sketch Kustodiev (Lot 37), and this is understandable: estimate 6-8 million, in our opinion greatly exaggerated, do not fix the situation and the five millionth start.

And so we come to the main intrigue of auction. As written in the catalog, costume design Potiphar's Wife (Lot 43) is made in the studio Leon Bakst and pre-estimated 150-200 thousand rubles. Leonid Shishkin prefaced a story about this auction lot. He found it in some of London's house, where a sketch hung for 30 years. Near the Leonid provenance is not in doubt, but, unfortunately, the examination did not give an unambiguous answer to the question of whether he Bakst done this sketch or did his disciples. Indirect evidence suggests that like himself, but since there is no exact answer, then put the lot for 5-6 thousand dollars, and not 10-20, as it could be, if confirmed authorship of the Bakst .

And then it turned out, for what actually came known gallery owners. Bargaining starts from 130 rubles, and in increments of 5000 in nine steps has reached 175,000, traded a few people in the hall and two phones, the phone wins. After a lot of professional art dealers have left the auction and the auction proceeded smoothly without them.

Leon Bakst Workshop. Potiphar's wife. Costume design for production in 1914 of Richard Strauss's opera "The Legend of Joseph» Mixed media on paper. 34 x 27 Leonid Shishkin Gallery. 24.03.12. Lot 43 Source: shishkin-gallery.ru

following a surge of serious fighting occurred in two of the Alexander Benois (lots 68 and 69). Fought a few people in the room, telephone and correspondence rate. Watching the scene, I remembered a record 100%sale of the collection of works by Alexander Benoit at Sotheby's four months ago. Demand for his work has remained stable. And this time, the price start from 68 Auction 85 000 for 8 steps reached the victorious 150 000 - upper bound estimate, and the price of Lot 69 from the start 300,000 in four steps doprygnula up to 430,000, on which, and stopped. Both figures are well within the range of world prices for the product Benoit .

BENOIT AN Imperial stables at Peterhof Watercolour and pencil. 16 x 20 Leonid Shishkin Gallery. 24.03.12. Lot 68 Source: shishkin-gallery.ru

BENOIT AN Versailles. Neptune Pool. 1906 Watercolour and pencil. 30 x 43 Leonid Shishkin Gallery. 24.03.12. Lot 69 Source: shishkin-gallery.ru

Next auction went calmly and as late as it turned out, quite effectively.

'll note that here the results of the auction believe that is fixed in the hall. So: of the 132 lots sold to 65 (49.3%) in the amount of 4628 rubles. Of these, 41 lots - in the hall, 17 lots - the participants by phone, 7 lots - of absentee rates. For price ranges consumers' preferences were distributed as follows: lots of 97, whose lower estimate was less than or equal to 100 thousand rubles, sold 60 (61.9%) from 101 to 500 000 - sold 30 4 501 to 1 million - from 2 sold 0, more than 1 million - one of three sold out.

We continue to see good activity buyers. Moreover, it is important that such a result, first shown in the current year, several leading auction houses, and second, this time showed a special auction of theater schedules. Hence - the conclusion that purchasing activity is not random, it is observed in all sectors of the Russian art market. As for the experimental part of the auction (though under its influence have been trading in general), the Leonid Shishkin can only congratulate and wish good luck in his future work with this complex, but as it turned out, very thankful direction.

Babulin Constantine, AI