The first auction devoted solely to contemporary design will take place at Christie’s in New York this autumn.

“It really is an increasingly popular market,” said Carina Villinger, design specialist of Christie’s New York. “There is a huge overlap with contemporary art. It has got to the point where we need a separate auction.

The Christie’s sale will feature items such as a polyurethane table by the London-based Iranian architect Zaha Hadid, who designed the aquatics centre for the London Olympics, estimated to raise $200,000.

Another lot will be a highly polished steel sofa by the British-born Israeli designer Ron Arad for $300,000. Arad’s work will be exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York next year.That sofa is made of steel that’s polished to match the reflection of a real mirror!

South African born artist Marlene Dumas set a new record this month for the most expensive living female artist, when her painting The Visitor, fetched £3.1 million ($6.2million) at a Sotheby’s auction.

Dumas’s painting was sold at the Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening Sale held in London on the 1st of July. The £3,177,250 million bid for the painting surpasses Dumas’ previous record of £1.8 million set in February 2005.

Described by Sotheby’s as a psychologically challenging and strikingly beautiful painting, The Visitor is a large scale (180cm x 300cm) depiction of a group of female streetwalkers.

The painting shows six young sex-workers in a room looking towards a door at the end of the room. The poses of the women suggest that they are competing for their trade while anticipating the imminent arrival of a client. Since the door is illuminated, the viewer’s attention is also drawn to this door.

Dumas work is well known for its critical approach to social topics such as birth, death, sex, life, race, identity, motherhood and feminism.

As one of the industry’s most celebrated and acclaimed female artists, Dumas’ work has been exhibited in the world’s leading galleries from Paris, London and New York to Madrid, Tokyo and Germany.

Christie’s sold last week Jeff Koon’s Ballon Flower (Magenta) for $25,752,051, a world record price for the artist at auction.

This work is one of five unique versions: Magenta, Blue, Orange, Yellow, Red and was executed between 1995 and 1999.

Balloon Flower (Magenta) 1995-2000 is from a top Dallas art collector who paid less than £600,000 for it seven years ago. It was the first time a work of this scale and quality by Koons were publicly offered in London.

A Claude Monet painting has fetched a record £40.9m ($80.5 million) for the artist’s work at an auction in London.

“Le Bassin aux Nympheas” had been expected to fetch 18-24 million pounds, but after an intense bidding battle it smashed the previous Monet auction record (Le Pont du chemin de fer a Argenteuil ) of $41.5 million set in May.
Painted in 1919 in Giverny in France it has been seen in public just once in the past 80 years. The identity of the bidder has not been made public.

It was part of the evening sale of impressionist and modern art at Christie’s which raised 144 million pounds ($283 million), the highest total for an auction in Europe. All figures include buyers’ premiums.

Art expert Charles Dupplin said despite “current financial jitters around the world” art lovers are still willing to pay money for “exquisite, unique items”. He added: “Art lovers everywhere should be cheered to see that, despite gloomy predictions, the art market looks to have a healthy future.”

Both Sotheby’s and Christie’s are holding significant Impressionist and Modern evening sales in London this week. “We’re seeing a very strong market for top quality Impressionist paintings this summer,” the vice chairman of Impressionist & Modern Art Worldwide at Sotheby’s, Helena Newman, said.

On Wednesday, Sotheby’s will put up Monet’s “La Plage à Trouville” expected to fetch between $14 million and $20 million. “It’s an iconic work,” Ms. Newman said. “Monet was exploring the effects of the wind and the light on the water, all quintessentially Impressionist effects.”

Monet completed his painting in 1870 while vacationing with his wife and son at the tony French resort town of Trouville.

Designed by Luiz de Basto of Miami, the SeaFair’s Grand Luxe is world’s first luxury-exposition megayacht. It will display art, jewelry, and antiques from prestigious U.S. and European museums, art galleries, and jewelers. Sized at 228 foot, it will also be available for private events, offering two five-star quality restaurants, open-air caviar and champagne lounges, and cocktail areas in conjunction with the exhibitions. All events will occur portside only.

It is an innovative concept designed to expand the marketing reach of American and International dealers while revolutionizing interest in the local arts and cultural community. In today’s challenging global environment, this custom-designed exhibition yacht will bring dealers directly to collectors’ seasonal residences rather than requiring the collector to travel a great distance in order to visit world-renowned galleries. The massive three-tiered $20 million Grand Luxe, is currently undergoing ship modifications, and marketing adjustments.