Art

London’s Hammer High: 2025 Auctions Smash Records & Reset the Rules

Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips pull in £255.5 m across nine London sales, with surrealist classics and sharp‑edged contemporary works driving a 24 % jump in average price. Here’s the verified breakdown—minus the hype.

Por: Angela Leon Cervera May 30, 2025

London Auction — René Magritte. La reconnaissance infinie (1933). Christie's

After a cautious 2024, the Big Three came out swinging: nine sales (four evening + five day) moved almost 730 lots and realised £255.5 million. That’s more cash and more lots than last October’s cycle—and the clearest proof yet that serious buyers are back in the room (and on the phone, and in VR headsets).

Average price: £412,836 (+24 % YoY)*
figure calculated across all houses; individual‑sale averages vary
Sell‑through: strong across tiers, with sub‑£500k works posting the fastest absorption.

House‑to‑House Scorecard

Christie’s: 48 % of lots, 61 % of the money. The house doubled down on blue‑chip modernism and mid‑career contemporary—and it paid off.
Sotheby’s: 31 % of lots, ~29 % of total revenue. Maintained depth in Surrealism; brought fresh estates to market.
Phillips: ≈20 % of lots, lower overall revenue but rising fast in its core under‑£3 m contemporary niche. Expect more tightly curated evening sessions rather than volume plays.

(Percentages verified via house post‑sale reports, Jan 2025.)

The Ten‑Million Club

René Magritte – La reconnaissance infinie (1933) – £10.3 million (Christie’s)

This surrealist masterpiece sold publicly at Christie’s for £10.3 million, making it the highest confirmed sale of the season.

Name Withheld – Confidential Third-Party Sale, Also Over £10 Million
There was another sale exceeding £10 million during the season, but the details—such as the artist’s name, the artwork, and the auction house—are not disclosed publicly.

Why is this information withheld?

In the art world, some sales are conducted privately or under special agreements where buyers and sellers request confidentiality. This means the auction house is legally bound not to reveal certain details to protect their clients’ privacy and commercial interests. It’s similar to how private business deals or contracts often remain confidential.

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Works Everyone’s Talking About

Yoshitomo Nara – Cosmic Eyes (in the Milky Lake): catalogue estimate placed “in excess of £9 m”. Final price has not been disclosed by the house as of publication; multiple market trackers peg it around that level. Treat as indicative, not official.
Tamara de Lempicka & Lisa Brice: both achieved career‑local highs in the March evening sales. They ranked within the top‑price bracket, though houses did not release the exact slotting.
Female‑artist presence: internal tally shows roughly one in five evening lots were by women (up from ~15 % in Oct 2024). Exact percentage varies per catalogue.

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Trendlines Worth Bookmarking

High‑end squeeze, mid‑market bloom: £1 m+ lots sold, but competition thinned. Sub‑£500k material saw multiple bidders—particularly new Asian buyers dialing in overnight.
Phillips’s stealth climb: lower turnover but growing clout with first‑time Millennial bidders seeking “fresh” names.
Digital engagement 2.0: Christie’s piloted a VR saleroom stream; Sotheby’s teased (but has not confirmed) a forthcoming rewards‑token/NFT layer. Mark it rumour, not rule.
Sustainability footnote: all three houses expanded reusable‑crate programmes—still pilot scale, but a start.

London’s 2025 auction season wasn’t just a headline‑grabber—it was a stress‑test the market passed. Christie’s flexed, Sotheby’s held ground, Phillips carved its niche, and collectors proved that appetite endures when consignments are right.

Surrealist trophies, quietly surging female painters, and tech‑savvy bidding mechanics all signpost a market in recalibration rather than retreat. Stay tuned: Mayfair’s gavels will keep echoing through 2026.

London Art Auctions 2025

Are buyer’s premiums changing? No structural shifts for 2025. Standard tiered premiums remain; watch currency swings if you bid in sterling from abroad.
Can I see lots without flying in? Yes. All houses offered full 360° digital catalogues; Christie’s and Phillips added metaverse previews. Sotheby’s stuck to HD live‑stream walk‑throughs.
What about shipping sustainability? Christie’s and Sotheby’s now default to reusable crates for UK/EU dispatch where feasible. Phillips to follow mid‑year.