PARIS.- The first ever sale dedicated to Surrealism in Paris was staged by Sotheby’s today, in the very same rooms that saw a landmark exhibition celebrating Surrealism’s 40th anniversary in 1964, with many of the leading artists themselves in attendance.

Today’s auction brought an overall total of €33 million / $36 million, with all but one lot sold. The sale comes at a time when Surrealism is the subject of increasing international attention from institutions and collectors alike, and follows on the heels of Sotheby’s record-breaking sale in London of René Magritte’s L’empire des lumières, which sold for £59.4 million / $79.8 million. This marked new auction benchmarks for both the most valuable painting ever sold in Europe, and the most valuable Surrealist work ever sold worldwide.

“Surrealism and its Legacey” was led by two masterpieces by Francis Picabia, under the hammer for the first time. Pavonia (1929), an outstanding example from the artist’s famous Transparencies series, achieved €10 million ($11 million) - setting a new auction record for Picabia. Directly commissioned from the artist by the influential art dealer Léonce Rosenberg for his Parisian apartment, the painting attracted six bidders.

Marking the beginning of Pop Art, the sublime Nu de dos (1940-1942), which had remained in the same private collection since 1989, sold for €3.3 million ($3.6 million).

René Magritte was represented by four works spanning his fifty-year career, which brought a combined total of €7.1 million / $7.8 million. Le paysage fantôme, one of the artist’s earliest word paintings, far exceeded its high estimate to achieve €2.2 million ($2.4 million). Le bon temps, a rare collage from 1966, showing the artist’s famous bowler-hatted figure receiving a kiss from the Moon, sold for €1.3 million ($1.4 million), and La Joconde (Mona Lisa), a monumental sculpture specially cast for gallery owner Alexandre Iolas, sold for €1.7 million ($1.9 million).

The second highest price of the sale was set by an important wooden relief by Hans Arp, L'O et l'U de l'oiseau (1928), previously unseen at auction, that sold for €3.4 million ($3.8 million).

Female Surrealists

A special section of the sale was devoted to the work of the great female Surrealists, in recent years recognised in their own right by museums and collectors for their role in shaping art history, including major, long-unseen works by Dorothea Tanning (Mêlées nocturnes, 1958, sold for €567,000 ($621,000), Leonor Fini (Sphinx for David Barrett, 1954, sold for €119,700 ($131,100), and Toyen (Chambre secrète sans ferrure), 1966, sold for €1.5 million ($1.6 million).

The legacy of Surrealism

Several important works by artists influenced by the Surrealist revolution included Lucio Fontana's Concetto Spaziale from his iconic Tagli series, 1965, which achieved €1.3 million ($1.4 million). A rare and previously unseen Anthropométrie by Yves Klein, ANT 20 from 1962, from a private Swiss collection, realised €2 million ($2.2 million), while Claude Lalanne’s striking Pomme de Jardin sold for €882,000 ($966,000), far exceeding its pre-sale estimate of €300,000-500,000.

Continuing the Surrealist theme, Sotheby’s Paris will present tomorrow the Collection of André Mourgues, long-term partner to the legendary gallery owner Alexander Iolas, who was arguably among the most influential ambassadors for Surrealism and its sister, the Pop Art movement, of all time. From mounting Andy Warhol’s first and last gallery exhibitions and introducing an American audience to Surrealism, to shaping the careers and movements of those with whom he forged personal and lasting friendships, Iolas played a vital role in the post-war art world.

Looking further ahead, Sotheby’s Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Auction in Paris on 21 April will include works by Chagall, Picasso, Léger, Miró, and Brancusi.