Sotheby’s 3 Million Contemporary Evening and Mnuchin Sales Kicked Off New York’s May Marquee Auctions

Sotheby’s $433 Million Contemporary Evening and Mnuchin Sales Kicked Off New York’s May Marquee Auctions

May 15, 2026 / Sophie Clearwater /

Coinciding with several art fair openings, Sotheby’s kicked off a May auction round in New York expected to exceed $1 billion with The Now & Contemporary Evening Auction and a dedicated sale of works from the collection of legendary dealer Robert Mnuchin. The duo of sales generated $433.1 million—a result that fell neatly within the presale estimate of $325.6-444.6 million but was 133 percent up on last May’s contemporary sales, which generated $186.1 million, and more than double November 2025’s Contemporary Evening sale offering. The short, condensed and fairly dramatic Mnuchin sale closed white-glove at $166.3 million, exceeding its $130 million presale estimate and generating peaks of activity around some of the most coveted works.

Leading the night was the monumental, vibrant red canvas by Mark Rothko, Brown and Blacks in Reds (1957), which hammered after a few minutes at $74 million ( $85.8 million with fees). Despite the remarkable sum, the result fell short of its $100 million estimate and the previous record of $89.6 million set at Christie’s in 2012 for Orange, Red, Yellow (1961). Part of Mnuchin’s collection for more than two decades, the work appeared in major institutional exhibitions and is one of just 15 large-scale canvases Rothko produced in 1957, most of which are now in museum collections. Mnuchin purchased the work at Christie’s in 2003 for just $6.7 million; it was previously part of the collection of Joseph E. Seagram.

Pursued by five bidders, the opening lot, Pablo Picasso’s Deux femmes nues assises, sold to a bidder in the room after 16 bids for $1,536,000, exceeding its estimate after fees. Seven bidders pursued Willem de Kooning’s Untitled XLII (1983), which met its high estimate, selling for $12,410,000. As Brett Gorvy recently noted while commenting on a similar de Kooning offered in their new LGD Hammer, “the ’80s de Kooning market has been very strong at auction,” particularly in Asia, and several bidders from the region were drawn to the Mnuchin work and its sweeping lines of blue, red, pink and violet moving across a luminous white ground. In between, Joan Miró’s Dormeurs réveillés par un oiseau, described as one of the finest gouaches by the artist from 1939 ever to appear at auction, was pursued by five bidders, who pushed it past its high estimate after 22 bids, selling for $6,464,000.

Another top result of the night was the monumental Franz Kline abstraction Harleman, from the 1960s, which sold within estimate to a bidder in the room for $14.5 million, while a sculptural Jeff Koons bust, Louis XIV (1986), sold within estimate for $8,570,000. Mnuchin was among Koons’s earliest supporters, acquiring and promoting the artist’s work long before his market reached its current heights. Coming right after was an additional earlier Rothko, No. 1, dated 1949, a critical year in the artist’s practice and the development of his style, and recently showcased as one of the highlights of the show at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris. Covered by both a guarantee and an irrevocable bid, it sold for its high estimate at $20,805,000. (The work previously sold at Christie’s London in 2017, achieving $13 million.) Toward the end, another de Kooning sold, covered by a guarantee and an irrevocable bid, for its $4 million high estimate. Closing the sale, the David Hammons sold just short of its high estimate for $1,088,000, while a John Chamberlain failed to meet its low estimate, selling for $383,000 despite being a significant piece included in the artist’s landmark retrospective at the Guggenheim in 1971.

After a short break, the night continued with The Now & Contemporary Evening Auction, which met its high presale estimate, achieving $266.8 million with a 91 percent sell-through rate. The result was 110 percent up from the $127.1 million generated by the same sale last year.

Leading the auction was Basquiat’s 1983 Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown), from the most sought-after moment of the artist’s career, when the young star had reached the peak of his short but intense trajectory. The best Basquiat offered this season, and undoubtedly accompanied by both a guarantee and an irrevocable bid, the work sold for $52.7 million, with three bidders pushing it past its $45 million estimate. The painting belongs to a group of 12 monumental canvases all executed that year and made its debut at Basquiat’s historic solo exhibition at Gagosian in Los Angeles in 1983. Reproduced on the front cover of the artist’s monograph edited by Dieter Buchhart and Anna Karina Hofbauer, the canvas has an extensive exhibition history and had been on long-term loan to Fondation Beyeler in Riehen from 2013-2018 before featuring prominently in Fondation Louis Vuitton’s monumental retrospective from 2018-2019, followed by the Brant Foundation’s Jean-Michel Basquiat presentation in 2019. It will reappear in public in a year, part of an exhibition at Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi in Florence from September 2027 to January 2028.

The auction opened with strong results for the ultra-contemporary, despite the category having considerably compressed its relevance in these evening sales since the post-pandemic fresh painting boom. Rising Chinese artist Ding Shilun set a new record at his New York auction debut, with Three Princess fetching $358,400 against a more conservative $50,000-70,000 estimate. The result follows the artist’s recent solo show at ICA Miami, which put him on the international radar and fueled a secondary market; last year, another work sold well above estimate at Phillips London for $149,600. Lot 2 in the sale confirmed the continuing rise of Japanese artist Yu Nishimura, with Leaves carpet, a beautiful example of his meditative paintings combining the human figure and nature, reaching almost the million-dollar mark, selling for $998,400 from its $120,000-180,000 estimate and setting a new record for the artist. Nishimura’s prices have been on the rise, particularly after his celebrated solo show at David Zwirner, followed by the announcement of his representation.

Another highly sought-after ultra-contemporary name came right after, with one of the largest works by Joseph Yaeger ever to appear at auction, The Euphemism, fetching $320,000 from its $80,000-120,000 estimate and setting a new record as well, as accessing the artist’s works has become almost impossible. This work is the first of five by the artist scheduled to appear at auction in New York this season. Also on the ultra-contemporary side, Florian Krewer’s night hunters, achieved $256,000 from its $120,000-180,000 estimate, also marking a new auction record for the artist.

Landing within expectations, an intimate Elizabeth Peyton painting sold for $1.9 million, while Ed Ruscha’s mountain Me met its high estimate after fees, selling for $6.95 million, followed by Alma Thomas’s pink kaleidoscopic Pinks of Cherry Blossoms, which surpassed its estimate to sell for $3.9 million. Exceeding expectations was also Helen Frankenthaler’s 1964 Cape Orange, which sold for $7.3 million, the second-highest price ever achieved at auction for the artist, just as Frankenthaler is the subject of an extensive show at Gagosian in Chelsea.

More top results came a few lots later, with Andy Warhol’s Brigitte Bardot achieving $24.8 million, pursued by six bidders who pushed it well above its $14-18 million estimate and set a record for a work from the limited series. Coming to auction for the first time, having been held in the Gunter Sachs Collection for more than 50 years, this 1974 work belongs to a legendary series of eight paintings of Bardot commissioned by Gunter Sachs, Bardot’s husband from 1966 to 1969. Another highly anticipated lot was the stunning Fontana from the Venezia series, Concetto spaziale, Il cielo di Venezia, which fetched $16.4 million against its $10-15 million estimate after being chased by six bidders over five minutes, setting a new record for a work from the series.

Despite the story and the publicity, Keith Haring’s Self-Portrait, emerging for the first time at auction from the collection of his best friend Kermit Oswald, landed within estimate at $4.3 million, covered by a guarantee. Also falling short of its high estimate was the monumental six-foot-square candid white and pale grid by Agnes Martin, Untitled #10 (1981), which hammered for $7.2 million, or $8.9 million with fees, from its $7-10 million estimate.

Most of the other results fell within strategically set estimates, and the guarantee script was often active, with a few moments of excitement and deeper bidding accompanying other highlights, such as the 1996-1997 Mark Rothko Untitled, which sold above estimate for $16.5 million. Part of the Jean and Terry de Gunzburg trove, where it had been held for 26 years, the work was also included in a seminal exhibition at The Menil Collection in Houston, which revisited the Chapel commission.

Another important consignment Sotheby’s had secured for this auction was the collection of Jennifer Gilbert, sold to benefit her forthcoming art foundation, Lumana in Detroit. The absolute highlight was her Kenneth Noland, Circle, an early masterpiece by the artist, dated 1978 and one of the largest works in this format, which, as expected, also set a new record, selling for $5.5 million. A few lots later, Gilbert’s Joan Mitchell Loom also sold to a bidder in the room for $7.8 million after being pursued by five bidders. She bought it at a very different moment in the artist’s market in 2013 for $1 million.

Toward the end of the evening, another artist record was set on the contemporary side: Sarah Sze’s The Day Away achieved $614,000 from its $300,000-$500,000 estimate. Overall, Sotheby’s solid results confirm a new level of confidence in a market that has clearly left behind the speculative race and found a new stability in reasonable estimates that meet bidding demand, as much as the security of a strategic script with guarantees and irrevocable bids to sustain the rhythm. Notably, Asia was also visibly back in the sale, pursuing some of the top lots, including works by Willem de Kooning (lot 2), Mark Rothko (lot 8), Ding Shilun (lot 101), Yu Nishimura (lot 102), Ed Ruscha (lot 105), Agnes Martin (lot 118 and lot 128), David Hockney (lot 125) and Andy Warhol (lot 140). Of these, the Hockney and the Warhol both sold to collectors in Asia.

The May auction round continues next week with Christie’s highly anticipated Masterpieces: The Private Collection of S.I. Newhouse on Monday, May 18, which is expected to deliver a result in the region of $450 million.