Sotheby's Sales Of Impressionist & Modern Art Total $248.3 Million

NEW YORK CITY

:On May 3 at Sotheby's, in a packed salesroom, Pablo Picasso's "Dora Maar au chat," one of the artist's most spectacular depictions of his lover and artistic companion, sold to an anonymous buyer for $95,216,000, making it the second most expensive painting ever sold at auction.

At least four bidders on the telephone competed with a bidder in the room who prevailed after a lengthy and spirited battle.

The portrait was included in Sotheby's sale of Impressionist and Modern Art, which brought $207,564,800, the highest total for a sale in this category at Sotheby's since May 1990. Part II of the sale, conducted the following day, realized an additional $40,732,000. The results brought the grand total for Impressionist and Modern art at Sotheby's this spring to $248,296,800.

The May 3 sale also featured a spectacular painting from Henri Matisse's celebrated Nice period - "Nu couché vu de dos" - which sold for $18,496,000, a record for the artist at auction.

An auction record was also established for Dame Barbara Hepworth, whose monumental sculpture, "Three Obliques (Walk-In)," sold for $1,128,000. The sale was 96.9 percent sold by value and 87.3 percent sold by lot, with 27 lots, nearly half of the 55 offered, selling for more than $1 million.

In addition to "Dora Maar au chat," competition was particularly fierce for other works by Picasso. "Arlequin au baton," from 1969, one of the finest latter-period works by the artist to appear at auction in recent memory, sold for $10,096,000; his "Femme assise dans un fauteuil," consigned by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, sold for $6,736,000; and his "Sylvette" of 1954 made $4,608,000.

As many as six bidders competed for one of André Derain's most accomplished Fauvist landscapes, "Paysage à l'Estaque," driving the final price to $6,848,000, surpassing the high estimate of $5 million. Also by Derain was "Musique," a lyrical watercolor, that sold for $598,400, a record for a work on paper by the artist at auction and well above the presale estimate of $250/350,000.

Vincent van Gogh's "Les Toits" from 1882 attracted strong interest from bidders both in the room and on the telephone, selling for $4.72 million. Depicting the view from the artist's attic window overlooking the rooftops of The Hague, the work on paper had been estimated to sell for $2.5/3.5 million.

Works by the Impressionist Claude Monet were also sought after. His "Près Monte-Carlo," a vivid landscape in blues and greens capturing Monet's love of the light and colors of the Mediterranean, attracted competition from six determined bidders, ultimately selling for $5,056,000 - well above its presale high estimate of $3 million.

The same number of bidders also competed for the artist's "Azalées Blanches en Pot," which made $1,920,000. Similarly, Pierre Bonnard's "La Partie de Balle" made $912,000 against a presale estimate of $400/600,000

Rounding out the evening sale's top ten lots were Marc Chagall, "Le Bouquet (Bouquet de Ferme)," $3,376,000, and Fernand Léger,"Nature Morte, Etat Definitif," $3,208,000.

On May 4, Sotheby's conducted Part II of the sale. August O. Uribe, senior vice president and specialist in charge of the sale, said, "We witnessed the introduction of Russian participation in the Part II sales at an unprecedented level. In addition, Asian buyers continued to have an increased presence that we have not seen for more than a decade. Nonetheless the backbone of the bidding remains in the United Kingdom, continental Europe and the United States."

The sale's top ten lots were Kees Van Dongen, "Nu au Laurier," $2,256,000; Camille Claudel, "L'Abandon," bronze, 1905, $1,696,000; Auguste Rodin, "Pierre de Wiessant," 1984, $940,000; Raoul Dufy, "Nogent-sur-Marne," 1935, $889,600; Henri Lebasque, "Sur le banc vert, Sanary," $856,000; Paul Delvaux, "la Sybille," $755,200; Jacques Lipchitz, Cubist sculpture, $710,400; Le Sidaner, "Terrace in Autumn," 1920, $665,600; Marquet, "Boulevard de la Madeleine,"$598,400; and René Magritte, "Melusine," $542,400.

All prices reported include buyer's premium, which is 20 percent of the hammer price on the first $200,000, and 12 percent thereafter. For information, 212-606-7000 or www.sothebys.com.