The Easel

Archives: Felix Salmon

6th June 2015

Buying at Sotheby’s just got more expensive – again

If the economics of the art world is of interest, this one’s for you. The price boom in ‘trophy’ art at auction has been widely canvassed. Major auction houses like Sotheby’s are able, as middlemen, to ‘clip the ticket’ and share in any windfall gains. The chart showing how commissions have evolved is, well, priceless.