A professional market band
Between €50,000 and €100,000, provenance, condition, tax and liquidity matter as much as the artist’s name. The cited 2025 results concern specific works and moments, not universal price lists.
Estimate, hammer and total price
An estimate guides bidding; the hammer closes it; the buyer’s total adds premium and sometimes taxes or resale royalty. London also introduces sterling, post-Brexit import rules and exchange risk for EU buyers.
Six documented European cases
Phillips recorded £69,850 for Tracey Emin, £50,800 for Bernd and Hilla Becher, £69,850 for Miriam Cahn, £63,500 for André Butzer and £88,900 for Georg Baselitz. Sotheby’s Paris estimated César’s Hommage à Léon at €50,000–70,000.
Medium changes the comparison
An editioned Becher photographic group, a unique Cahn painting and a César bronze require different checks. Similar prices do not make equivalent objects.
Checklist before buying
Request a recent condition report, complete provenance, bibliography, archive confirmation, clear title, VAT and resale-right treatment, transport and insurance costs. Compare year, size, process, series and quality.
The real budget
Include premium, taxes, currency, framing or crating, shipping, storage and insurance. Resale can be slow and costly, so the decision should remain sound without future appreciation.
Sources & links
Phillips / Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation