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Welcome back to Wall Power, your twice-weekly report on the art market. The slow-simmering Sotheby’s story has suddenly begun to boil. The Wall Street Journal’s prominent piece last week alluded to a cash crunch at the auction house—with surprisingly little to back up the claim. Of course, that moved the company’s dwindling cash position from an offstage saga to a starring role. Now, consignors, creditors, and employees, both current and former, are on high alert. Will Sotheby’s get its essential cash infusion in time to save the all-important November sales? What’s going on with the much-touted—but now oft-second-guessed—acquisition of the Breuer building? If the Emiratis can’t or won’t close, would a bridge financing be necessary? If so, who might step up?
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Wall Power
Wall Power

LAST CALL

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Welcome back to Wall Power, your twice-weekly report on the art market. I’m Marion Maneker.

The slow-simmering Sotheby’s story has suddenly begun to boil. The Wall Street Journal’s prominent piece last week alluded to a cash crunch at the auction house—with surprisingly little to back up the claim. Of course, that moved the company’s dwindling cash position from an offstage saga to a starring role. Now, consignors, creditors, and employees, both current and former, are on high alert. Will Sotheby’s get its essential cash infusion in time to save the all-important November sales? What’s going on with the much-touted—but now oft-second-guessed—acquisition of the Breuer building? If the Emiratis can’t or won’t close, would a bridge financing be necessary? If so, who might step up?

I’ll give you my thoughts on all of that, below.

But first…

  • Christie’s Post-War to Present results: Christie’s posted a weak $30.5 million sale for its mid-season opener. The hammer ratio was .85 and the sell-through rate a low 74 percent. Much of the property was held over from...
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Win, Lose, or Drahi
Win, Lose, or Drahi
A 280-year-old company can withstand a lot more than bad press, but it’s undeniably been a rough month for Sotheby’s amid an art market slump, employee jitters, and feverish speculation surrounding fresh Emirati cash. Does Patrick Drahi have a plan, beyond muddling through?
MARION MANEKER MARION MANEKER
Earlier this summer, shortly after the announcement of a billion-dollar investment from ADQ, an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, it seemed like Sotheby’s had successfully mitigated the most intense of its financial pressures. Yes, everyone knew the familiar stories of woe: a six-month payment program for vendors that started five years ago; a three-year incentive plan that had been fulfilled with a promissory note earlier this year; a new fee structure; and the brand-revitalizing HQ move to the old Whitney on Madison, slated for later this year. But that confidence was suddenly punctured following two damaging news stories—a leaked bond report in the FT at the end of August, and the devastating...
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Latest Articles from Art

Marion Maneker • October 2, 2024
Art Market Shocks & Leon Black’s Math
Welcome back to Wall Power, your twice-weekly report on the art market. The slow-simmering Sotheby’s story has suddenly begun to boil. The Wall Street Journal’s prominent piece last week alluded to a cash crunch at the auction house—with surprisingly little to back up the claim. Of course, that moved the company’s dwindling cash position from […]
Marion Maneker • October 2, 2024
Marion Maneker: Why I Joined Puck
(Sample from Sports) In many ways, my arrival at Puck represents the full circle of my career covering the Art Market. When I was first getting started in this business, I wrote a newsletter that covered the burgeoning cable TV industry. Decades later, the formula still reigns, despite the convulsions of the industry.
Julia Ioffe • October 2, 2024
Minus inventore ipsa error cupiditate
Eos excepturi voluptas.




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