They managed to exceed their highest estimates and even set sales records

On June 29, Sotheby's New York had one of its most anticipated auctions of the year: the “Evening Sale of Impressionists and Modern Art”, which brings together the works of some of the most prominent Hispanic and Impressionist artists such as René Magritte, Joan Miró, Edvard Munch, Marc Chagall and Paul Signac. The final proceeds of the auction were $62 million dollars, mostly attributable to the results generated by Latin American artists.

The stars of the auction were Latin American women, particularly surrealists, such as Remedios Varo, Leonora Carrington and Frida Kahlo. According to ArtNet News, every time a Varo or Carrington lot appeared, there was tension and excitement among auction attendees to see the results they would achieve. And Remedios Varo, who is not considered a blue chip artist*, managed to set a record for herself with a sale of $6 million dollars.

*Blue Chip Artists: Those artists whose works have shown a consistent increase in value over several years, such as Pablo Picasso, David Hockney and Jean-Michel Basquiat.

A work by Frida Kahlo also surprised attendees with a result of $2,660,000 USD for her work “Congress of the People of Peace”, when her highest estimate was only $600,000 USD. It is important to remember that, although Kahlo has obtained higher results at auctions, it is common for her to appear as a character in her works. Her other works in which she doesn't appear (such as still lifes) receive a completely different valuation since they do not usually attract the attention of collectors.

However, their highly regarded male colleagues failed to live up to expectations, staying very close to their lowest estimates, or even failing to sell; as was the case of the work “Madre Feliz” by Rufino Tamayo. Picasso also failed to exceed the maximum estimates with any of the 3 available lots, and his work “Le Réservoir” sold below the expected minimum.