NEW YORK, NY.- Last night at Sotheby’s New York, the evening sale of Latin American Art brought a total of $16,841,500, within the $14.5/19.9 million estimate, with 69% of lots sold. Online participation was particularly strong, with 23% of lots selling to internet bidders. The top lot of the evening was Sandías y naranja by Rufino Tamayo, which was formerly in the collection of film legend and fashion icon Audrey Hepburn. The work was the subject of a long contest between two telephone bidders before eventually selling for $2,292,500 (est. $1.2/1.8m).

A series of exceptional prices for Fernando Botero were led by the monumental bronze Man on a Horse from the collection of Marjorie S. Fisher, Palm Beach, which realized $1,824,500, well over the $800,000 / 1.2 million estimate. Homage to Bonnard, a largescale nude painting, also exceeded expectations to sell for $1,392,500 (est. $600/800,000).

Frida Kahlo’s Niña con collar realised $1,812,500. The whereabouts of the work had been unknown for decades, with a black-and-white photograph taken by the artist’s friend Lola Álvarez Bravo, the only record, until Sotheby’s was approached by the owner this summer. The Contemporary Art section of the sale saw a series of strong prices for abstraction and kinetic art including Jesús Rafael Soto’s Vibración negra which exceeded the $300/400,000 estimate to realize $552,500 and Physichromie (Baroque) by Carlos Cruz-Diez which fetched $492,500.

“Tonight we saw a series of exceptional prices for the giants of Latin American Modern Art. It is rare to offer such outstanding works by Rufino Tamayo, Frida Kahlo, and Diego Rivera in the same sale, and so I was pleased to see the enthusiastic response from bidders.” ---Axel Stein, Sotheby’s Head of Latin American Art