Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic The art market is drawing to the end of another difficult year, but has likely “hit the floor”, says Lindsay Dewar, head of analytics at ArtTactic. Her research company finds that total sales at evening auctions, which account for the bulk of value, fell 33 per cent in 2024 to date at Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips in New York, London and Hong Kong. These had already dropped by 31 per cent in 2023. While macro, global uncertainties persist, Dewar says that “there are signs the market’s tone is shifting”, given the solid November sales season, where “35 per cent of lots exceeded their mid-estimates, and several new artist records [were] set”.A similar pattern emerged with shipments around the world this year, says Simon Hornby, senior vice-president of specialist logistics company Crozier, with a “stronger pick-up” in the fourth quarter, including outside of art fairs. Business in Paris has been markedly strong this year, he says, “including art from South America, Brazil and west Africa — adding a flavour to the market that has not been seen in London”.In general, though, “auction houses and commercial galleries have become much more price-conscious in terms of our services”, Hornby says, as fixed costs have risen with inflation across all industries. Consequently, late payments have become more of an issue for shippers. “We are keeping a very close eye on our receivables,” Hornby says, adding that “service providers are not bankers”.One major item still to come to auction this year is the oldest known copy of the Ten Commandments, inscribed on marble and dated between 300AD and 800AD, on sale at Sotheby’s for between $1mn and $2mn on December 18.New York’s Salon Art + Design fair, founded in 2012, will open a second edition in Dallas next year. It will run from March 26-30, with organisers taking two floors for about 35 exhibitors in The Block House, built in 1941 as a Masonic Temple in downtown Dallas. Other fair organisers are looking to the fast-growing Texas communities for expansion — last month, Miami’s Untitled Art announced an edition in Houston.Salon’s move marks the next chapter for the fair, one of four brands in the Sanford L Smith + Associates stable and including the long-standing ADAA Art Show. Smith died earlier this year and, says Nicky Dessources, executive director of the Salon fairs, “expanding was something he and we always wanted to do”. Dallas, she says, is a city that exhibitors had cited as “significant”, and her new edition falls the week before the established Dallas Art Fair for modern and contemporary art. “Design is becoming part of the same conversation as fine art and we want to continue to contribute to this transition.” Rebecca Wei is setting up her own art advisory firm now that Lévy Gorvy Dayan gallery — whose Asia operations Wei ran from 2020 — has closed in Hong Kong. Wei & Associates opens next week with an office and viewing room in Hong Kong’s Central New World Tower and with a team including experts based in Tokyo, Taipei and London. Its focus will be on 20th- and 21st-century paintings priced over $1mn, Wei says.Previously Christie’s president and chair of Asia for eight years, Wei joins other ex-auction house experts such as Patti Wong and Yuki Terase on Hong Kong’s growing advisory scene. “There are lots of art advisers with similar backgrounds in London and New York. Now that the auction houses are in their own buildings, and the Hong Kong season is 365 days a year, clients need more help,” she says. Wei will continue to have a “collaborative relationship” with Lévy Gorvy Dayan, meaning that “we will give each other priority”, she says, “depending on our clients’ needs”.London’s recent season of Old Masters auctions felt thin in terms of its consignments but nonetheless performed above estimates — something of a rarity in 2024. Christie’s made a total £11.3mn from 23 lots on December 3 (£14mn with fees, est £7.2mn-£10.6mn). These were topped by a 17th-century, two-sided painting by Sir Anthony van Dyck, which hammered for a within-estimate £2.8mn (£3.4mn with fees). Later in the sale, the 18th-century “Guilty Punchinello” by Giambattista Tiepolo was bought by the Louvre in Paris for £2mn (£2.5mn with fees, est £1mn-£1.5mn). Sotheby’s made a total £20.6mn from 25 lots the next evening, which combined Old Master works and 19th-century fare (£24.2mn with fees, est £13.1mn-£19.4mn). Results were boosted by a battle for Sandro Botticelli’s “The Virgin and Child Enthroned”, which sold for £8.6mn (£10mn with fees, est £2mn-£3mn). The painting was recently fully attributed to the Renaissance artist rather than his workshop, and dated to c1470. As art exhibitions increasingly venture to unusual places, a trio of curators has taken the pop-up to its logical conclusion: showing in an Airbnb rental in London. The site-specific exhibition is named after its venue’s listing — *New* cosy 1 bed home | Shoreditch | Long Stays — and will have work by 12 contemporary artists that address the notion of “home”, including the impact of today’s gig economy on housing (January 16-March 9 2025, 331 Bethnal Green Road). All areas of the flat will be used, including the bathroom and kitchen, says Charlotte Seux, one of the curators and exhibiting artists.The idea came about because “trying to find short-term, accessible space in London is extremely difficult”. They are paying £8,000 for a two-month rental, Seux says, supported by the collections management company Wari Art and curatorial platform Project Space.Their Airbnb host knows about the exhibition. The listing gets five-star reviews, though one recent resident reports that “the sound of the underground trains can be heard inside the apartment . . . If you’re a light sleeper, bring earplugs!” The Art Market column takes a seasonal break and will be back in JanuaryFind out about our latest stories first — follow FT Weekend on Instagram and X, and subscribe to our podcast Life & Art wherever you listen
