Resonance Provenance

The F.P. Journe Chronomètre à Résonance Souscription No. 007, which changed hands for US$13.9 million (HK$109 million) at Phillips in New York this summer, was one of the most celebrated modern horological masterpieces ever offered at auction. It exemplifies François-Paul Journe’s pioneering interpretation of the resonance phenomenon, where two balance wheels positioned closely together synchronise and stabilise each other through subtle physical vibrations. This principle enhances precision and reflects the Swiss watchmaker’s admiration for 18th-century chronometry.

The Souscription series holds particular importance in the brand’s history. Produced in an initial limited run of 20 and offered to early collectors through a subscription model, it helped finance the manufacture’s launch. Number 007 in this foundational batch is one of only two featuring a 18-carat rose-gold and platinum two-tone case paired with a warm pink-gold dial – and its twin is thought to be owned by Journe himself.

Two separate time displays dominate the face, each with its own hour, minute and small seconds indication, highlighting the dual movement architecture beneath.

Blue Coup

A 10.02-carat fancy intense blue diamond has bedazzled New York, selling at Sotheby’s for US$8.7 million (HK$68.3 million) – the highest individual price achieved in the city’s spring jewellery sales. The standout gem, an unmounted cushion-cut stone, captivated collectors with its saturated ocean-blue hue and remarkable brilliance. An exceptional balance of impressive scale with refined symmetry and clarity significantly enhanced its desirability.

The stone’s ‘Fancy Intense Blue’ grading is one of the rarest colour classifications recognised by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), indicating a strong and vivid concentration of colour. Blue diamonds owe their extraordinary colouration to trace amounts of boron within their crystal structure, an element seldom present during formation deep within the Earth. As a result, stones of this size and quality are exceptionally scarce.

Sotheby’s High Jewellery sale this June totalled a stunning US$43.4 million. While its top lot reaffirmed the enduring appeal of rare blue, competitive bidding throughout reflected the continued global demand for top-tier coloured diamonds as portable stores of value.

Bouquet Catch

Banksy’s Love Is in the Air (Life Size) struck a chord with collectors of contemporary and urban art this summer. A final price tag of £6.43 million (HK$68.1 million), realised at Sotheby’s in London, propelled it among the artist’s top 10 auction achievements while reinforcing his position as one of the most influential and commercially successful creatives of his generation.

Rendered in 2011 in stencil style on canvas with spray paint and oil, the work depicts a masked protester, frozen mid-motion, preparing to throw not a weapon but a bouquet of brightly coloured flowers. The life-size format intensifies the immediacy of the figure, making the gesture feel confrontational yet hopeful.

Stark black-and-white tones juxtaposed with vivid florals create a powerful visual contrast between aggression and tenderness, capturing Banksy’s signature blend of street-art rebellion and poetic symbolism. The bouquet becomes a symbol of peace, defiance and the transformative power of nonviolence. He originally introduced the flower-thrower motif in the early 2000s, and it has since become one of his most recognisable and politically resonant images.

Crossed-out Cultural

Jean-Michel Basquiat’s The Italian Version of Popeye Has No Pork in His Diet sees the Neo-Expressionist artist at his most confident, expressive and culturally incisive. Painted in 1982, a pivotal year of his meteoric career, the large-scale canvas held by tied-together wooden supports reimagines the iconic cartoon character in signature raw, gestural style. Figures, numerals, shapes and crossed-out text fragments collide in a composition that feels both playful and politically charged.

The painting embodies the energy of the early 1980s art scene, a period when Basquiat was rapidly ascending from downtown New York graffiti prodigy to international art star. Like many from his short life, it layers references to race, power, consumer culture and identity beneath a surface that vibrates with colour and urgency.

Auction results invariably underscore Basquiat’s position as one of the most important artists of the 20th century. This work fetched US$32 million (HK$251 million) at Christie’s in 2024. A similarly iconographic creation from 1983, Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown), commanded the headline price of US$52.7 million at Sotheby’s earlier this year.

World-Time Record

In the rarefied world of haute horology, few moments capture collectors’ imaginations like the sale of a legendary Patek Philippe. At Phillips’ Geneva Watch Auction in May, an extraordinary Ref. 2523 ‘South America’ achieved an astonishing 7.96 million Swiss francs (HK$77.46 million), instantly setting a world record for the model.

Crafted in 1953, Patek Philippe’s Ref. 2523 is revered as one of the most beautiful world-time wristwatches ever made. Encased in warm 18-carat yellow gold, this particular example features an exquisite cloisonné enamel dial depicting a vibrant map of South America – the rarest and most romantic of the series’ three map variations. The miniature enamel work alone places it firmly in the realm of portable art.

Technically groundbreaking for its era, it features the manufacture’s signature dual-crown system, allowing the wearer to track multiple time zones with effortless elegance. What makes this piece even more compelling is its rarity. Produced in extremely small numbers and largely absent from public view for decades, the ‘South America’ 2523 embodies both scarcity and storytelling, showcasing the enduring allure of global adventure.

Mystery in the Making

Phillips showcased one of horology’s most enchanting creations in Geneva recently: a Cartier Mystery Clock sold for more than 1.2 million Swiss francs (HK$11.82 million), reaffirming the enduring fascination with the maison’s most magical invention.

First introduced in the early 20th century, Cartier’s Mystery Clocks astonished the world by creating the illusion of floating hands suspended in crystal, seemingly disconnected from any visible mechanism. The secret lies in hidden toothed discs driven by a concealed movement housed discreetly in the base.

This 1924 example embodies the artistry and technical ingenuity that define Cartier at its most imaginative. Crafted in rock crystal, agate, rose quartz, nephrite, diamond, onyx, turquoise, mother-of-pearl, yellow gold and enamel, it incorporates most remarkably an antique chimera.

Mystery Clocks were produced in very limited numbers, often under the creative direction of Louis Cartier in collaboration with master clockmaker Maurice Couët. Representing a union of fine watchmaking, decorative arts and theatrical design, each piece remains as spellbinding today as it was more than a century ago.

King Koons

Sotheby’s New York shimmered with anticipation as Jeff Koons’ Louis XIV (1986) crossed the auction block, ultimately achieving US$8.57 million (HK$67.18 million). The sale reaffirmed Koons’ place at the intersection of art, luxury and cultural spectacle.

Part of the Neo-Pop artist’s celebrated Statuary series, Louis XIV is a stainless-steel sculpture that reimagines the famed French monarch as a high-gloss icon of opulence. As a life-size bust of the Sun King, it draws inspiration from grand European monuments. Yet in Koons’ hands, the narrative shifts, with the highly polished piece balancing aristocratic power and popular kitsch.

Created in the mid-1980s, during Koons’ meteoric rise in the international art world, the sculpture reflects his fascination with grandeur, celebrity and the allure of perfection. Its immaculate surface and meticulous craftsmanship blur the line between fine art and luxury object, making it as much a statement piece as a collectible masterpiece. Louis XIV’s successful sale proves that Koons’ bold vision continues to captivate amid a global culture where heritage meets high shine, and art becomes pure spectacle.

Ocean’s 13

The spring-sales spotlight in Geneva shone brightly when Christie’s unveiled one of nature’s incredible treasures: the Ocean Dream, a 5.5 carat fancy vivid blue green diamond that is the largest of its type to be graded by the GIA laboratory. It sold for a breathtaking 13.6 million Swiss francs (HK$132.1 million) in a new world record for a sparkler of this shade.

The name Ocean Dream could not be more fitting. With a luminous triangular shape and an almost fluid glow, the stone seems to capture the shifting colours of serene tropical waters. Its extraordinary blue-green hue – a phenomenon created by trace elements and the Earth’s natural forces over millions of years – places it among the rarest and most alluring of diamonds. Given that examples with such a pure and saturated colour are exceedingly scarce, it is a true collector’s fantasy.

The diamond’s re-emergence at auction generated palpable excitement among connoisseurs, jewellers and investors, who led the bidding to more than double its 2014 sale price. Geneva once again proved why it remains the global stage for exceptional gemstones.

Number’s Up

Jackson Pollock’s 1948 drip painting, Number 7A, sold for an extraordinary US$181.2 million (HK$1.42 billion) at Christie’s in New York in May, attaining the fourth highest price ever achieved at auction for an artwork. It was painted in the year widely considered to be the American artist’s creative breakthrough, leading to the birth of Abstract Expressionism as a global force.

This was the moment Pollock fully realised his revolutionary drip technique, placing a huge canvas on the floor and moving around it to apply pigment in a near-choreographed performance. Here, trails of black enamel are dotted with flashes of red, forming a dense yet remarkably balanced composition that pulses with energy. Far from random, the work reveals a masterful sense of rhythm and control while feeling immersive and alive.

The US$181.2 million result underscores Pollock’s enduring dominance at the top tier of the art market. More than a painting, Number 7A captures the raw innovation that redefined modern art. It stands as a defining icon of the 20th-century spirit – bold, radical and timeless.

Bible Class

Marlene Dumas’ poignant The Annunciation achieved US$1.95 million (HK$15.3 million) at Sotheby’s recent Now & Contemporary auction in New York, reaffirming the powerful market presence of one of today’s most influential figurative painters. Born in Cape Town and based in Amsterdam, the artist is known for her emotionally charged works, particularly those that reinterpret historical themes through a modern lens.

Rather than depicting the biblical scene in traditional narrative detail, Dumas distils the Archangel Gabriel’s message to Mary that she will give birth to Jesus into atmosphere and psychological tension. Her figures often appear suspended in washes of translucent pigment, emerging softly from pale, undefined backgrounds. Painted in 1988 in bleeding strokes of teal, ochre and scarlet, this intimate composition appears as a meditation on vulnerability, revelation and human connection.

Dumas’ fluid brushwork and restrained palette create a sense of fragility, as though the image might dissolve at any moment. The Annunciation represents a thoughtful engagement with timeless themes of faith, identity and introspection rendered with a sensitivity that feels both modern and enduring.

Snow Success

Celebrated for reinterpreting childhood imagery through a sophisticated, intellectual lens, Beijing artist Liu Ye captured the spotlight at Art Basel Hong Kong this year. His enchanting 2006 work, Snow White, sold for US$3.8 million (HK$29.8 million), underscoring the strong demand for the Chinese contemporary master’s most iconic literary subjects, particularly those drawn from fairy tales.

At first glance, Snow White appears disarmingly delicate. The heroine’s porcelain-smooth complexion, precisely rendered features and saturated crimson accents are hallmarks of Liu’s meticulous technique. His surfaces are flawlessly polished, almost enamel-like, revealing an extraordinary level of control. Yet beyond the technical refinement lies emotional complexity.

Completing his education in Berlin and influenced by Western modernism, Liu blends European cultural references with a distinctly contemporary sensibility. In Snow White, the familiar storybook character becomes a quiet meditation on identity, memory and cultural exchange. The composition’s minimal background intensifies the psychological focus, allowing the viewer to engage directly with the figure’s subtle expression.

Ville of Value

Zao Wou Ki’s Ville Chinoise was the headliner at a Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong this spring, fetching US$2.6 million (HK$20.4 million) and demonstrating the timeless appeal of the late master’s cross-cultural vision. Born in Beijing in 1920 and later based in Paris, Zao forged a distinctive language that bridged continents. His paintings balance spontaneity with compositional harmony, reflecting an equilibrium between movement and stillness, and East and West.

Created in 1955, this work illustrates Zao’s transition from figurative to abstract style. It is also his only oil painting whose theme bows directly to his motherland. While he generally favoured a dark colour palette during this period, Ville Chinoise is treasured for its lighter tones – yellow, purple and a deeper blue merge dreamily into soft pastel blues.

The artist’s abstraction is never cold; it feels lived in, almost breathed onto the canvas, with brushstrokes that carry the cadence of Chinese calligraphy and the freedom of postwar European modernism. A Zao Wou Ki work is a cultivated blend of scale, nuance and cultural dialogue that feels effortlessly cosmopolitan.

Pickup on The Wall

Pink Floyd lead guitarist David Gilmour’s legendary ‘Black Strat’ sold for an extraordinary US$14.6 million (HK$114.4 million) at auction in New York this March, setting a new world record for a guitar. The sale underscored the instrument’s cultural weight – it became inseparable from the iconic British band’s sound, shaping some of the most recognisable passages in modern rock history.

Gilmour purchased the Fender Stratocaster from famed New York store Manny’s in 1970, following the theft of his previous guitar. He modified it over decades, changing pickups, necks and hardware to refine its tone. The worn black finish, white pickguard and unmistakable patina tell the story of constant touring and recording. It featured on landmark albums of the 1970s including The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here and The Wall.

Its sale at this unexpected sum – Christie’s had estimated just US$2-4 million – reflects the continued strength of the high-end memorabilia market, where provenance and cultural impact drive record-breaking results. More than an instrument, the Black Strat represents a defining chapter in rock history.

Dorothea in Dreamland

Dorothea Tanning’s Children’s Games achieved £4.7 million (HK$49.4 million) at an ‘Art of the Surreal’ evening auction in London this spring, setting a new benchmark for the late US painter’s work and reaffirming her central role in the 20th-century art and cultural movement. Realised in 1942, the small Surrealist work exemplifies her psychologically charged approach to figuration. At first glance, the composition appears whimsical, yet closer inspection reveals unsettling tension beneath its dreamlike surface.

The painting depicts three girls entangled in ambiguous play within an interior space that feels both domestic and destabilised. A door opens into unknown realms, fabric twists into organic forms, wallpaper is torn to reveal flesh underneath, and gestures hover between innocence and unease. Tanning’s muted palette heightens the emotional ambiguity, blurring boundaries between childhood imagination, subconscious anxiety and violent action.

Children’s Games reflects broader Surrealist explorations of desire, fear and transformation. Its strong sales signals sustained collector interest in women Surrealists whose contributions have been historically underrecognised.

Final Frontier

A work from the Space series by pioneering artist Alma Woodsey Thomas soared beyond its modest estimate to land US$3.7 million (HK$29.1 million) at auction in New York recently. The successful sale of Snoopy Sees Sunrise on Earth (1970) reinforces Thomas’s enduring importance within postwar American abstraction.

The Washington D.C. teacher only became a professional artist upon her retirement; she was the first fine arts graduate from Howard University in 1924, and the first African-American woman to stage a solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1972, aged 80. Her signature style was short, repeated dabs of paint carefully arranged in mosaic-like brushstrokes to produce a pulsating surface.

Inspired by the Apollo 11 moon landing and the cartoon character’s role as NASA’s safety mascot, Snoopy Sees Sunrise on Earth merges cosmic imagination with lyrical abstraction. Its sunrise motif suggests optimism and renewal. Thomas’s legacy reflects the spirit of scientific achievement and cultural transformation during the space age.

Lion Lines

The only animal drawing by Rembrandt to remain in private hands was sold earlier this year to benefit wildcat charity Panthera. Young Lion Resting garnered US$17.9 million (HK$140 million), trouncing the previous auction record of US$3.7 million for a drawing by the Dutch Golden Age painter.

This tiny work in black chalk on paper, washed light brown, dates back to between the late 1630s and mid-1640s, when the artist was flourishing in Amsterdam. It depicts a reclining lion rendered with remarkable immediacy and control. Through economical yet expressive strokes and nuanced shading, Rembrandt masterfully conveyed texture, weight, quiet vitality and an ability to imbue even a resting subject with psychological presence.

Although celebrated primarily for his portraits and biblical scenes, the maestro is estimated to have produced several hundred drawings, including more animal studies than the 15 or so known to have survived to this day. These works reveal his fascination with anatomy, movement and the interplay of light and shadow.

Ruby February

Gemfields mining group generated a substantial HK$415 million from its recent mixed quality ruby auction held in Bangkok, underscoring continued international demand for responsibly sourced gemstones. Some 189,620 carats of rough rubies changed hands at the February sale, primarily from the Montepuez Ruby Mine in the northeast, which is recognised as one of the world’s most significant ruby deposits.

Mozambican rubies have gained prominence alongside traditional Burmese stones over the past decade. The structured auction platform provided by UK-headquartered Gemfields emphasises transparency, traceability and ethical-sourcing standards, reinforcing buyer confidence.

Offering a broad spectrum of sizes, saturations and clarity grades, the auction attracted high-jewellery house suppliers as well as manufacturers. Attendees could admire the splendid stones at private viewings before the online bidding. The strong results, with most lots successfully placed, marked a reaffirmation of growing investor and industry appetite for rubies and other coloured gemstones.

Prince of a Ride

A sleek white 1968 Lamborghini Miura P400 originally owned by a Saudi prince was steered to a handsome price of HK$16.8 million by Broad Arrow Auctions, reaffirming the model’s status as one of the most important early supercars. Introduced in 1966, the Miura transformed automotive design with its revolutionary mid-engine layout, placing a transverse 3.9 litre V12 behind the cabin and producing about 350 horsepower. This engineering breakthrough established the template for generations of high-performance sports cars that followed.

Signature details such as the delicate ‘eyelash” headlamp surrounds and sensuous low profile contribute to its enduring visual drama. With fewer than 280 early Miura variants produced, surviving examples remain highly sought after by collectors worldwide.

The model’s consistently lofty auction results reflect sustained global demand for blue-chip Italian classics, particularly landmark cars that reshaped performance and styling standards. Sixty years after its debut, the Miura remains both a sculptural icon and a defining milestone in Lamborghini’s history.

Foot of Note

A rare, recently rediscovered Michelangelo drawing realised a staggering HK$212.8 million at Christie’s in New York, more than 10 times its high estimate in a new auction record for the Renaissance master. This diminutive sketch of a foot offers intimate insight into the artist’s creative process, revealing how he refined complex compositions through dynamic anatomical exploration and compositional experimentation.

Thought to date to 1511-12 and executed in red chalk on paper, it is one of countless studies made for Michelangelo’s monumental task of painting the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Most of those that survived are held in major museum collections, making any newly available example a landmark event.

The drawing in question, which had been sent to the auction house on spec by an owner unaware of its illustrious provenance, relates to a fresco of the Libyan Sybil stepping down from her throne. More than five centuries after its creation, it stands as a powerful testament to Michelangelo’s enduring influence and the continued global demand for Old Masters of the highest tier.

Hippo

François Xavier Lalanne’s celebrated Hippopotame Bar achieved an extraordinary HK$245.9 million at auction in New York, underscoring the continued global appetite for museum-quality design with sculptural presence. Created in 1976 as part of the famed French sculptor’s iconic animal-furniture series, the baby-size hippo is cast in hand-wrought copper and opens to reveal a fully-fitted bar. Lalanne’s appeal among collectors has long been defined by the duality between monumental solidity and playful utility.

Subsequently produced in a limited edition in bronze, the unique piece stands as one of the most coveted examples of 20th-century French design. The exterior captures the muscular form and textured hide of a resting hippopotamus, while the interior surprises with polished compartments designed to hold bottles and glassware. At once functional object and fantastical sculpture, it epitomises Lalanne’s ability to merge fine art, design and wit.

The Sotheby’s result positions this 50-year-old bar as the most valuable design object ever sold at auction. While reflecting sustained demand for rare, statement-making works, it reaffirms Lalanne’s enduring influence in the collectible design market.

Brazilian Luxe

A magnificent Paraiba tourmaline, celebrated for its saturated, luminous blue colour and starring in a Tiffany & Co. necklace of finely matched diamonds, fetched a world-record price at auction in New York in December last year. The 13.54-carat gemstone went under the hammer for US$4.2 million (HK$32.7 million), more than 10 times Christie’s low estimate. 

The remarkable price affirms both the rarity of this triangular-modified, brilliant-cut tourmaline mined in Brazil and the lasting desirability of the storied US jeweller’s most spectacular creations. A pair of matching Paraiba tourmaline and diamond earrings – featuring glorious neon-blue oval stones weighing 3.45 and 3.19 carats – echoed the same design language: elegant proportions, meticulous setting and a harmony between colour and light. They realised US$1.3 million, underscoring the strength of the ensemble as a museum-worthy suite. The necklace and earrings exemplify a pinnacle moment where provenance, exceptional stones and timeless design converge. Capturing the imagination of collectors, they reinforce Tiffany & Co.’s legacy at the highest level of the jewellery world.

Master Pièce

The Audemars Piguet ‘Grosse Pièce’ (Big Piece) pocket watch has clocked in as the brand’s most expensive timepiece not sold for charity. One of the most important achievements in haute-horlogerie history, this marvel of the manufacture was auctioned for US$7.7 million (HK$60 million) last December, and shares the title as the most complicated AP pocket watch ever crafted.

A testament to the technical mastery and artistic ambition that defined Audemars Piguet’s early grande-complication creations, the No.16869 was commissioned by a London watch company, S. Smith & Son, in 1914 on behalf of an American client. Among a total of 19 mechanisms housed within a richly engraved yellow-gold case, it boasts a perpetual calendar, minute repeater, chronograph functions and astronomical indications. Appearing as the London night sky on one side of the watch’s double face, the celestial function renders it unique,.

Designed at a time when pocket watches represented the pinnacle of mechanical innovation, the ‘Grosse Pièce’ exemplifies the era’s pursuit of technical perfection. It also confirms Audemars Piguet’s place among the great names in watchmaking.

Frida the Leader

Frida Kahlo’s haunting self-portrait El Sueño (La Cama) achieved a landmark result at Sotheby’s New York late last year, changing hands for a momentous US$54.7 million (HK$426.7 million). It became the most expensive artwork by a woman ever sold at auction, and reaffirmed the Mexican painter’s enduring significance in art history.

Painted in 1940, the surrealist work – The Dream (The Bed) in English – depicts the artist asleep in an ornate wooden canopy bed, her body entwined with creeping vines that blur the boundary between dream and reality. Hovering above her is a reclining skeleton, a potent symbol of mortality that underscores Kahlo’s lifelong confrontation with pain, illness and the nearness of death. The composition is both intimate and unsettling, transforming a private moment of rest into a deeply psychological landscape.

Created during a period marked by physical suffering and emotional upheaval, La Cama reflects Kahlo’s unique ability to translate personal experience into universal imagery. The careful balance between stillness and tension, life and decay, reveals her mastery of symbolism and narrative self-portraiture.

Plumbing the Heights

The fully functioning solid gold toilet famously created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan in 2016 made a splash last year. First, the thieves who had stolen the audacious artwork from a display at Blenheim Palace in England – they are believed to have melted it down for its weight in gold ¬– were caught and sentenced to prison. A few months later, a privately owned second casting of Cattelan’s toilet was auctioned at Sotheby’s and bought by Ripley’s Believe It or Not! for a handsome US$12.1 million (HK$94.4 million).

One of the most instantly recognisable sculptures of contemporary art, the ironically titled America transforms an ordinary bathroom fixture into a sharp and unsettling meditation on wealth, power and excess. The title itself suggests abundance, aspiration and satire in equal measure. It was originally unveiled as a usable installation at the Guggenheim in New York, inviting the public to engage physically with the work. By elevating an object associated with privacy and necessity into a symbol of extreme luxury, Cattelan exposes the contradictions of today’s consumer culture.

Red rocks dazzle collectors, streamliner secures F1 auction record, Magritte masterpiece flies high at sale & walking tribute to Giacometti’s legacy

Ruby Rising

The Sunrise Ruby, a superb 25.59-carat Burmese gemstone set in a Cartier ring flanked by diamonds, made history when it sold for US$30.3 million (HK$235.5 million) at Sotheby’s Geneva back in 2015. A decade ago, this amounted to a world record for the most expensive ruby sold at auction, as well as the highest price ever paid for a coloured gemstone and a Cartier jewel.

The ruby’s name is inspired by a poem by 13th-century Sufi mystic Rumi, adding a layer of poetic allure to its legacy. Its sale served to elevate rubies to new heights of prestige. Their rarity and radiance as the gemstones of royalty strike a chord with collectors, especially in Asia, where the colour symbolises joy and good fortune.

The Sunrise Ruby is classified as ‘pigeon’s blood’ red, the most coveted hue for rubies, and is untreated, significantly enhancing its value.

This sumptuous jewel has since been pipped as the most expensive ruby ring sold by Sotheby’s. That honour is now claimed by the Estela de Fura, an immense 55.22-carat ruby which sold for US$34.8 million in 2023.

Fast & Glorious

A 1954 Mercedes-Benz W 196 R Streamlinienwagen became the most valuable Grand Prix car ever sold at auction when it rolled off the RM Sotheby’s block for €51.2 million (HK$458.4 million) in Stuttgart earlier this year. One of four known complete examples mounted with the original enclosed-fender coachwork at the conclusion of the 1955 Formula One season, this rare racer is celebrated for its pivotal role in motorsport history. The model’s streamlined body reduced drag and enhanced speed – an innovation that helped Mercedes dominate the racing scene in the mid-1950s.

Powered by a 2.5-litre straight-eight engine with fuel injection, the W 196 R Streamliner delivered exceptional performance and engineering precision. It was driven by legendary racers, including Juan Manuel Fangio, who steered the car to victory in the 1955 Buenos Aires Grand Prix.

The Streamliner’s lightweight aluminium construction and advanced suspension system made it a technical marvel of its time. Its record-breaking sale underscores the enduring appeal of vintage motorsport engineering and the prestige associated with Mercedes-Benz’s racing legacy.

Statue of Mystery

René Magritte’s La Statue Volante (v) is a hauntingly poetic example of surrealist mastery, reflecting the artist’s enduring fascination with paradox and the uncanny. Painted during a mature phase of his career, it distils signature themes the Belgian began exploring in the 1920s and 1930s: dislocation, mystery and the subversion of reality.

In this 1958 iteration, Magritte’s iconic Venus de Milo motif is seen grounded in the foreground – a symbol of classical permanence set against the turbulent backdrop of a storm at sea, where a lone ship is battered by the waves. Such unexpected and inexplicable contrasts –characteristic of the artist – arouse provocative musings on the boundaries between the real and the imagined.

After remaining in the hands of English contemporary art collector Pauline Karpidas for more than 40 years, the work made its auction debut at Sotheby’s London in September this year. The star lot of an evening sale, it secured £10.12 million (HK$103.4 million), affirming its status as a surrealist icon and a collector’s treasure.

Go Figure

Alberto Giacometti’s L’Homme qui marche (The Walking Man) is one of the most iconic sculptures of the 20th century, embodying existential themes through its elongated, textured form. A second edition of the cast sold for a mammoth US$104.3 million (HK$813.1 million) back in 2010, assuming its place as the most expensive sculpture sold at auction. It was toppled from the top spot five years later by another Giacometti masterpiece, L’Homme au doigt (Pointing Man).

The Swiss sculptor created a series of walking figures in the 1960s, each capturing the tension between motion and stillness. Cast in bronze, The Walking Man strides forward with haunting fragility and determination, reflecting Giacometti’s exploration of isolation and resilience. It stands six feet high, yet its slender proportions evoke vulnerability rather than grandeur.

With few casts in circulation, collectors regard The Walking Man as a pinnacle of modern sculpture. Its presence in a private collection or museum signifies a deep appreciation for Giacometti’s philosophical and artistic legacy – a legacy that continues to challenge and inspire audiences worldwide.