Confidence Under the Hammer

As global markets navigate uncertainty and buyers seek direction, Christie’s has emerged as a steady force, delivering not just results but conviction.

Under the fresh yet assured leadership of Chief Executive Officer Bonnie Brennan, the storied auction house has reaffirmed its place at the very centre of the cultural and collecting universe.

The first half of 2025 has been defined by strong results, strategic vision and the kind of market moments only Christie’s can create.

“Our focus remains simple yet powerful,” Brennan says. “We sell exceptional objects with extraordinary service. Everything else builds from that.”

Since stepping into the role in January, Brennan has emphasised continuity across global teams while sharpening Christie’s edge across categories. Her approach has been both measured and ambitious; a strategy that is already paying off.

Global auction sales in the first half of the year totalled $2.1 billion, in line with 2024’s performance, despite a more complex economic landscape.

The house posted an 88 per cent sell-through rate and a 115 per cent hammer-to-low-estimate index, both clear signals of pricing accuracy and sustained buyer appetite.

The digital transformation continues to gain ground as well, with 80 per cent of all bids placed online.

These topline figures tell a story of market confidence, but the real excitement lies in the moments that captured global attention.

In New York, Piet Mondrian’s Composition with Large Red Plane, Bluish Grey, Yellow, Black and Blue achieved $47.6 million, the centrepiece of the Leonard and Louise Riggio Collection, which totalled $272 million; the most valuable private collection sale of the year so far.

In all, Christie’s handled seven of the top ten and each of the top four most valuable artworks sold at auction in the first half of 2025. Sales in 20th and 21st Century Art, the house’s flagship category, remained stable at $1.3 billion.

Beyond modern and contemporary, Luxury was the true growth story.

Sales surged by 29 per cent, driven by remarkable performance in Jewels, up 25 per cent, with Christie’s selling nine of the ten most valuable jewels offered worldwide, and Classic Cars, where a 12 per cent increase sets the stage for the debut of the Gooding Christie’s brand at Pebble Beach in August.

Christie’s leadership in historic works was also underscored by a triumph in the Old Masters category, where sales rose 15 per cent.

That momentum was exemplified by the record-breaking sale of Canaletto’s Venice, the Return of the Bucintoro on Ascension Day, which achieved $43.9 million in London; a masterwork placed with gravitas and precision.

While Asian and World Art and Classics reflected more selective buying, the overall portfolio proved resilient.

Perhaps most tellingly, Christie’s is attracting a younger global audience: 31 per cent of buyers in the first half were Millennials or Gen Z; a generational shift that bodes well for the future of collecting.

As ever, Christie’s continues to act not just as a marketplace but as a cultural force. The London summer exhibition, Marwan: A Soul in Exile, offers timely artistic commentary, while the upcoming Art + Tech Summit at Radio City Music Hall in New York celebrates a decade of thought leadership at the intersection of innovation and art.

Christie’s has once again shown it can lead on all fronts. Under Bonnie Brennan’s confident direction, the house is not simply navigating the evolving landscape, it is defining it.