Director - Lending Specialist

Sotheby's records all-time high $4.4 billion in sales for first half of 2026. July 15, 2026 3:46 pm On Tuesday Sotheby's announced that they had logged their highest-ever numbers in sales between January and June of 2026, an astonishing $4.4 billion, representing a 58 percent increase in sales from the first half of 2025. The auction house attributed these returns, in part, to broadened engagement, some of which was fostered by their move to the Breuer Building on Madison Avenue. Within the first half of the year, their new home has drawn more than two times the visitors that the auction house's former location had received in the same period of 2025, Sotheby's said. Auctions raked in $3.4 billion of the profits, marking a 59 percent increase from the previous year. Private sales, meanwhile, hit $826 million, a 52 percent increase from last year. Sotheby's also said that the average number of bidders per lot also increased, up to 4.9. There have been several highlights for Sotheby's thus far in 2026 that have contributed to this overall financial peak. Its first Old Masters season at the Breuer earned $94.8 million; a standout being a diminutive Rembrandt drawing of a lion that sold for $18 million. Sotheby's New York marquee season recorded a record sell-through rate of 92.5 percent and earned $908.6 million in sales. A sale of works from the collection of Robert Mnuchin which included paintings by Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning, and Franz Kline netted $173 million, reaching more than $40 million higher than was estimated. Modern and contemporary auctions in Hong Kong fetched a combined total of $91.3 million, including a record-setting sale for the most valuable work by a woman artist ever sold in Asia with the sale of Joan Mitchell's La Grande Vallée VII, 1983 going for $17.6 million. In May, Sotheby's New York parted with 98 percent of its May 19 modern evening sale offerings, which included works by Matisse, van Gogh and Russian Constructivist Varvara Stepanova. Overall, the auction earned $303.9 million in sales. Charles F. Stewart, CEO of Sotheby's, said in a statement, "our record performance over the past twelve months has further enhanced our profitability and capital position and our pipelines for the second half of 2026 are strong and healthy." Artforum Inbox Register to receive its full menu of newsletters - From the Archive, Must See, Video, In Print, Dispatch, and ArtforumEDU - as well as special offers from Artforum.

Jewels en suite: Ritz-Carlton Central Park partners with Sotheby's. Between Fifth Avenue's longtime stalwarts (e.g. Tiffany & Co., Cartier, and Van Cleef & Arpels) and Madison Avenue's concentration of top-tier designers (think: Sauer, Marli New York, and Jessica McCormack, among others), New York City is a favorite destination for jewelry-loving tourists looking to ogle, discover, and acquire sparkling treasures of the highest order. Not to mention the downtown scene (including Spinelli Kilcollin and Trove) and the storied Diamond District (a must for vacationing couples on the hunt for engagement rings). A visit to one or all of these havens is an essential component of any jewelry-centric NYC travel itinerary. Even so, a certain type of peripatetic jewelry collector might be seeking a shopping experience that is exclusive, discreet, centered on one-of-a-kind finds, and completely curated to their individual tastes. They might even shape their entire trip around such an experience as some high-net-worth consumers have been known to do. And that's what makes this hotel package at the Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park so enticing: The hotel recently announced a partnership with Sotheby's to debut a private in-suite jewelry shopping experience for guests booking the property's Royal and Presidential Suites. It brings Sotheby's jewelry specialists directly to guests, who can privately view - and potentially acquire - a hand-curated selection of rare pieces without ever leaving their rooms. It's the kind of experience that speaks to a particular kind of traveler - one who wants access and discretion in equal measure. Reservations require two weeks' advance notice, giving Sotheby's specialists time to tailor the selection to the guest's tastes. The Ritz Carlton x Sothebys matchup proves that the city's most intriguing jewelry experiences aren't limited to window-shopping or traditional retail formats. Nor do they necessitate exposing yourself to the (sweltering) elements, which might be the case even if the store you seek is just a block or so from Central Park South. The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park's midtown location (at the corner of Central Park South and Sixth Avenue) likewise puts guests close to iconic department stores like Bergdorf Goodman and any number of by-appointment designer showrooms for private viewings and consultations. In a recent New York Times article, the designer Brent Neale Winston, cited her new, gloriously appointed NYC showroom as an example of "residential-style retail." As the Times piece notes, the appeal of these types of spaces lets designers control how their work is presented while building real relationships with clients, offering "a sense of intimacy and exclusivity that traditional retailers cannot replicate." In that sense, the Ritz-Carlton and Sotheby's opportunity feels like the ultimate expression of that same idea, elevated to an entirely different tier. It's the exclusivity of the private showroom experience in reverse, where the jewels come directly to the guest, in a space already built around comfort and privacy (and a view of Central Park to boot). Call it residential-style retail in its most sumptuous form: Instead of a showroom designed to feel like someone's home, you get the best of both: a luxury suite to serve as a home away from home that also doubles as the showroom, for however long a guest chooses to stay. I recently interviewed the director of merchandising at the Peabody-Essex Museum in Salem, Mass., who told me "jewelry is a bookmark for the mind - it is a touchstone of an experience." That idea feels especially fitting here. Between the Ritz-Carlton's sweeping views and plush furnishings, the hotel's world-class service, and the exceptional jewels showcased by Sotheby's, any piece a guest takes home is destined to become the ultimate keepsake from a visit to New York City - this summer and for years to come. Top: The exterior of the Ritz-Carlton Central Park, where you have the opportunity to add on an exclusive jewelry shopping experience with Sotheby's

Sotheby's reports record $4.4 B. First half as private sales and luxury fuel growth. July 14, 2026 11:57am Sotheby's reported record first-half consolidated sales of $4.4 billion on Tuesday, up 58 percent from the same period last year, fueled by gains across auctions, private sales, and its growing luxury businesses. Auction sales rose 59 percent to $3.4 billion, while private sales climbed 52 percent to a record $826 million. The company also posted its highest sell-through rate since at least 2010 and a record 4.9 bidders per lot sold. The numbers are undeniably strong. But the more interesting story is the one Sotheby's is telling the world about itself. Read closely, and this doesn't feel like an auction-results release. It reads more like an update from a diversified luxury company. Rather than simply celebrating blockbuster sales, Sotheby's is arguing that its future rests on a business that now stretches well beyond the auction room - with private sales, lending, luxury categories, hospitality, and real estate commanding as much oxygen as any Klimt, Pollock, or Rembrandt. That tone runs through nearly every section of the press release. Instead of focusing on individual trophy works, Sotheby's repeatedly highlights major single-owner collections, private transactions, and Sotheby's Financial Services. The message is that the company is becoming less dependent on evening sales and more reliant on long-term relationships with wealthy clients. While the pictures and sculptures recede almost into the background, Sotheby's repeatedly returns to provenance, celebrating the Robert Mnuchin Collection, the Lewis Collection, Jean and Terry de Gunzburg's collection, and the upcoming Magnum Opus sales. In the release, Madeline Lissner, the company's head of global fine art and major collections, described today's market as one driven by "quality, rarity and provenance." The release also reinforces a trend that has become increasingly apparent this year. Auction houses aren't simply benefiting from rising prices - they are competing to secure ever-larger estates and single-owner collections, suggesting that fresh property, not just stronger bidding, is driving much of the market's momentum. Perhaps the most revealing detail is the metrics Sotheby's chooses to emphasize. Yes, the house brought in $4.4 billion in sales, but the points of pride appear to be its 90 percent sell-through rate and record average of 4.9 bidders per lot. Over the past five years, much of the conversation around the art market has centered on guarantees, withdrawals, and unsold works. Instead, Sotheby's wants readers focused on sell-through and bidder participation - two metrics that suggest confidence and competitive demand without dwelling on the financial engineering that increasingly underpins the top end of the market. Private sales tell a similar story. At $826 million, the division has grown large enough that it's presented almost matter-of-factly, rather than as an auxiliary business. Alongside auctions, the company now highlights lending, securitizations, luxury real estate, restaurants, and cultural programming as core parts of its strategy. The result is a company that resembles an investment bank or private wealth adviser as much as it does an auction house. That impression is reinforced by the space devoted to finance. Sotheby's highlights an $825 million bond refinancing and a $900 million securitization completed through Sotheby's Financial Services, and says its recent performance has strengthened both profitability and its capital position. Those details aren't aimed primarily at collectors, but lenders, investors, and anyone still watching the company's balance sheet following owner Patrick Drahi's debt-heavy acquisition strategy. Sotheby's appears to want readers to conclude that its finances are strengthening alongside its auction business. The Breuer receives similarly prominent treatment. Sotheby's says visitor numbers at its Madison Avenue headquarters have more than doubled compared with its former York Avenue location, while highlighting Marcel restaurant and expanded exhibition programming. Ever since Sotheby's committed hundreds of millions of dollars to the Breuer, observers have questioned whether the investment would justify its cost. The company is now making the case that it has, not simply as a headquarters, but as a destination that attracts visitors, clients, and business. Luxury provides another illustration of the company's evolving identity. Watches were up 64 percent during the first half, RM Sotheby's posted record sales, and Concierge Auctions grew 18 percent. Rather than treating those businesses as complements to fine art, Sotheby's increasingly presents them as equal pillars of its growth strategy.