What Sold at Frieze Seoul and The Armory Show 2023

Summer came to an end for the art world last week with the return of two major art fairs on two different continents: The Armory Show (September 8th–10th) in New York and Frieze Seoul (September 6th–9th) in Seoul. Both fairs are now owned by the same company after Frieze announced that it would acquire The Armory Show, along with EXPO Chicago, earlier this year.

Both fairs—for now—have not revealed any plans to change their September slots in light of the acquisition. As The Armory Show’s executive director Nicole Berry told us earlier this week, this year’s fair was “business as usual.”

The Armory Show, which has occupied its September slot since 2021 (it was held in March before the switch in dates), is part of a week of fairs in New York that also includes Independent 20th Century, Art on Paper, and the inaugural Photofairs New York. Frieze Seoul, which staged its first edition in 2022, takes place in the same building as Korea’s longest-running art fair, KIAF, and is a part of Seoul Art Week, which features numerous gallery openings and events across the Korean capital.

“The ambience at the fair felt upbeat with a good attendance from international collectors, and we have observed again that the city represents one of the most sophisticated art markets anywhere in the world,” said Wendy Xu, White Cube’s general manager of Asia, at Frieze Seoul. “It’s clear that there is a community here that is deeply knowledgeable and engaged with both local and international modern and contemporary art.”

Taking place amid a period of sustained tension for the art world, with worries of a market “correction” abound, both fairs reported positive sales and strong attendance throughout.

While dealers at Frieze Seoul disclosed a higher number of six-figure sales, reported figures from The Armory Show reflect more strength in the middle market. This will have come as a relief to many of the galleries in attendance, following a slower-than-expected first half to the year across the art market broadly.

Here, we run down the key sales from both fairs.

Top sales at Frieze Seoul 2023

Hauser & Wirth reported a number of significant sales, including:

• A work by Nicolas Party for $1.25 million.
• A painting by Rashid Johnson for $975,000.
• Works by Paul McCarthy, George Condo, and Charles Gaines for prices ranging from $450,000–$800,000.
• Works by Gaines, Harmony Korine, Nicole Eisenman, Catherine Goodman, Angel Otero, Camille Henrot, Allison Katz, Pipilotti Rist, Günther Förg, and Cathy Josefowitz also sold in the range of $40,000–$175,000 per piece.

David Zwirner sold works by Mamma Andersson, Katherine Bernhardt, and Rose Wylie at prices ranging from $250,000–$550,000, as well as multiple works by Yayoi Kusama and paintings by Josef Albers and Joan Mitchell for undisclosed prices.

Thaddaeus Ropac—one of Artsy’s 10 best booths from the fair—sold:

• A work by Georg Baselitz for €1,200,000 ($1.3 million).
• A work by David Salle for $250,000.
• A work by Lee Bul for $190,000.
• A work by Tony Cragg for €300,000 ($322,000).
• Two works by Daniel Richter for €375,000 ($402,000) apiece.
• Ropac also announced a string of five-figure sales for works by artists including Mandy El-Sayegh and Heemin Chung, the latter of whom the gallery announced representation of during the course of the fair.

Kukje Gallery—another of Artsy’s best booths—confirmed multiple sales including:

• A work by Park Seo-Bo in the range of $490,000–$590,000.
• A work by Ha Chong-Hyun in the range of $223,000–$268,000.
• A work by Kyungah Ham in the range of $110,000–$132,000.

White Cube reported sales including:

• A work by Anselm Kiefer for €550,000 ($590,000).
• A work by Park Seo-Bo for $490,000.
• An Anthony Gormley sculpture for £350,000 ($438,000).
• A gold on cardboard work by Danh Vo for $375,000.
• A work by Tunji Adeniyi-Jones for $75,000.
• An oil on canvas work by Minoru Nomata for $50,000.

Pace Gallery reported several sales including:

• A work by Joel Shapiro for $175,000.
• A work by Qiu Xiaofei for $160,000.
• A Robert Nava painting for $150,000. Nava also opened a new solo show of paintings, “Tornado Rose,” at Pace Seoul during Seoul Art Week.
• A painting by Kylie Manning for $80,000.
• A work by Kiki Smith for $20,000.
• A “rare” 1965 sculpture by Alexander Calder, as well as a 1975 work on paper by the artist.
• The gallery also sold several other works by artists including Kenjiro Okazaki and Yoshitomo Nara for undisclosed sums.

Lehmann Maupin reported a string of sales from its booth, led by:

• Lee Bul’s Perdu XXI (2019), which sold for $200,000. Another painting by the artist, Perdu CLXXXII (2023), sold for $190,000.
• A painting by Loriel Beltrán for $75,000.
• Five works by Chantal Joffe in the range of £24,000–£80,000 ($30,000–$100,000) each.
• A work by Tammy Nguyen for $100,000.
• An oil on canvas work by Soun Hong for $50,000.

Tina Kim Gallery—which was among the winners of the inaugural Frieze Seoul Stand Prizes—sold multiple works by Ha Chong-Hyun, Park Seo-Bo, Suki Seokyeong Kang, Maia Ruth Lee, Seok Ho Kang, and others in the $20,000–$250,000 price range.

MASSIMODECARLO reported the following sales:

• A work by Yeesookyung for $140,000.
• A work by Aaron Garber-Maikovska for $100,000.

GALLERIA CONTINUA’s sales included a sculpture by Anish Kapoor for £600,000–£800,000 ($751,000–$1 million).

Cardi Gallery sold:

• A work by Mimmo Paladino for $350,000.
• A work by Dan Flavin for $250,000.

Almine Rech sold:

• A painting by Ha Chong-Hyun in the range of $450,000–$460,000.
• A painting by Javier Calleja in the range of €240,000–€260,000 ($258,000–$279,000).
• A painting by Cristina de Miguel in the range of $60,000–65,000.
• A painting by Timothy Curtis in the range of $85,000–$90,000.
• A painting by Medhi Ghadyanloo in the range of €78,000–€84,000 ($84,000–$90,000).
• A painting by Oliver Beer in the range of £45,000–£50,000 ($56,000–$63,000).
• A work by Jenny Brosinski in the range of €38,000–€42,000 ($41,000–$45,000).
• A painting by José Lerma in the range of $35,000–$40,000.
• A painting by Li Peng in the range of $15,000–$20,000.
• Two works by Gioele Amaro in the range of €19,000–€21,000 ($20,000–$25,000) and €20,000–€25,000 ($22,000–$27,000).

Gallery Hyundai’s sales included a pair of works by Seund Ja Rhee, which each sold in the range of $400,000–$450,000.

Kurimanzutto sold works by Gabriel Orozco, Rirkrit Tiravanija, WangShui, and Haegue Yang in the range of $40,000–$550,000, mostly to Korean institutions.

Lisson Gallery’s sales included the placing of a work by Stanley Whitney for $550,000.

Other notable sales from Frieze Seoul 2023

• Timothy Taylor sold out its presentation of 13 paintings by Artsy Vanguard alumnus Sahara Longe at prices ranging from $20,000–$30,000 apiece.
• Stephen Friedman Gallery sold a number of works, including a Caroline Walker painting for £25,000 ($31,000); a Yooyun Yang painting for $18,000 ($23,000); and a Sarah Ball oil on linen work for £85,000 ($106,000).
• Jessica Silverman’s solo presentation of works by Woody De Othello was met with strong interest. Sales included two large, glazed ceramic sculptures for $92,000 each; a free-standing sculpture for $85,000; a glazed ceramic sculpture for $75,000; and a large oil on canvas for $65,000.

• Various Small Fires had a strong opening day, selling a “variety” of works in the range of $25,000–$75,000 from its group presentation featuring Dew Kim, Wendy Park, Mark Yang, and Kyungmi Shin.
• Hong Kong gallery Kiang Malingue made a number of sales, including eight works by Chou Yu-Cheng with prices ranging from $25,000–$50,000.
• Seoul’s Hakgojae Gallery made a number of sales, including works by artists Pen Varlen (Byun Wol-ryong) and Haindoo for ₩100 million ($75,176) each.
• David Kordansky Gallery said that it had sold “almost all” of its new works by Mary Weatherford within the first few hours of the fair.

Top sales from The Armory Show 2023

While there were fewer six-figure sales reported at The Armory Show compared to Frieze Seoul, sales within the high five-figure price ranges were consistent across the fair.

The leading sales from the fair are as follows:

• Berry Campbell Gallery reported the sale of two works by Lynne Drexler for $800,000 and $95,000 respectively; a painting by Alice Baber for $200,000; Perle Fine’s Bristling (1946) for $275,000; and Ethel Schwabacher’s Untitled (Woman Series) (1955) by for $195,000.
• Jessica Silverman sold a large-scale bronze sculpture by Woody De Othello for $400,000; a painting by Julie Buffalohead for $50,000; works on paper by Clare Rojas and Rupy C. Tut in the range of $12,000–$20,000; a weaving by Margo Wolowiec for $38,000; and five table-top bronze sculptures by Rose B. Simpson to a mix of private and institutional collections for undisclosed sums.

• Victoria Miro sold nine new paintings from its solo presentation of María Berrío with prices ranging from $65,000–$200,000.
• Templon sold a work by Will Cotton for $150,000; Philip Pearlstein’s 2015 painting Model with Indonesian Mask for $150,000; works by Chiharu Shiota ranging from $64,000–$106,000; all of its works by Philippe Cognée for $32,000–$80,200; a piece by Alioune Diagne for $40,000; and a piece by Oda Jaune for $30,000.
• Jack Bell Gallery sold a 2023 Marc Padeu painting in the range of $70,000–$100,000; and a 2023 work by Lavar Munroe in the $70,000–$100,000 range.
• Ben Brown Fine Arts sold works by Yoan Capote, Candida Höfer, Vik Muniz, and Ena Swansea in the range of $75,000–$100,000.

• Michael Kohn Gallery’s main sales included a Siji Krishnan work for $80,000; three Nir Hod works for $75,000, $28,000, and $24,000; an Ilana Savdie work for $60,000; two Heidi Hahn paintings for $48,000 each; and a work by Alicia Adamerovich for $48,000. It also sold two Chiffon Thomas works for $30,000 and $26,000; two works by Rosa Loy for $16,000 each; three works by William Brickel for $12,500 each; a work by Shiwen Wang for $12,000; and a work by Faris Heizer for $9,000.
• KÖNIG GALERIE sold a work by Ayako Rokkaku for $89,993; a work by Alicja Kwade for $80,351; a work by Xiyao Wang for $69,637; a work by Robert Janitz for $24,000; and a work by Chiharu Shiota for $58,924.
• Edwynn Houk Gallery sold Zana Briski’s gold-toned photogram Bearogram #15 (2020) for $85,000.

• Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery sold three paintings by Joachim Lambrechts for $18,000 each, and 15 works on paper by the artist for $4,200 apiece; five paintings by Rebecca Brodskis in the $32,000–$48,000 range; and a Sara Berman painting for $25,000.
• Wentrup sold out its solo presentation of Jenny Brosinski, with prices ranging from $40,000–$50,000.
• Hollis Taggart sold a drawing by Tom Wesselmann for $38,000 and works by Ezio Martinelli and Larry Rivers for $15,000 and $55,000, respectively.
• Nara Roesler sold a 2001 work by Heinz Mack for $256,700, and two oil paint and wax on linen works by Fabio Miguez for $15,000.
• Garth Greenan sold 11 works by Howardena Pindell, priced in the range of $100,000–$875,000 per piece; and a Mario Martinez painting for $125,000.
• Kasmin sold 15 works by artists including Diana Al-Hadid, Theodora Allen, vanessa german, Daniel Gordon, Alexander Harrison, Lyn Liu, Alexis Ralaivao, and Bosco Sodi, with prices in the range of $20,000–$150,000.
• Tang Contemporary Art sold works by various artists including Zhu Jinshi, Wang Xiayao, Yue Minjun, Egami Etsu, Yoon Hyup, Woo Kukwon, and Zhao Zhao, with prices in the range of $16,000–$125,000.

Other notable sales from The Armory Show 2023

• Spinello Projects sold oil on canvas works by Alejandra Moros in the range of $6,500–$10,000; works by Thomas Bils in the $2,000–$20,000 range; and acrylic on canvas works by Zoe Schweiger, ranging from $4,800–$15,000.
• Richard Saltoun sold a Magda Cordell painting for $80,000; two Romany Eveleigh paintings in the range of $20,000; a number of vintage photographs by Annagret Soltau in the $10,000–$14,000 range; a painting by Sylvia Plimack Mangold in the “low six figures”; and three works by Jan Wade in the $8,000–$12,000 range.
• Public Gallery sold five paintings priced at $18,500, as well as two large-scale sculptures priced at $22,500 and $23,500, from its solo presentation of works by Cathrin Hoffmann.

• TERN Gallery’s sales included two works by April Bey for $18,000 and $25,000.
• Half Gallery sold a work by Yuan Fang to a Bronx Museum board member for $35,000.
• GRIMM sold a painting by Gabriella Boyd for $30,000; a painting by Anthony Cudahy painting with an asking price of $55,000; and works by Tommy Harrison and Volker Hüller in the range of $15,000–$20,000 per piece.
• Frestonian Gallery sold four unspecified large-scale oils on canvas in the range of $30,000–$50,000; and placed several small works on panel in the range of $5,000–$10,000 by Hannah Brown on the first day of the fair.

• Fredericks & Freiser sold two paintings by Hannah Lupton Reinhard for $22,000 and $22,000; a painting by Danielle Roberts for $15,000; and paintings by Anna Kenneally, Kate Pincus-Whitney, Lizzy Lunday, and Maria Calandra for undisclosed prices.
• P420 sold works by Irma Blank, Shafei Xia, and Francis Offman for $30,000, $10,000, and $6,000, respectively.
• Ludorff sold two sculptures by Katharina Fritsch for $36,000 and $16,000; two works by Josef Albers for $15,000 and $14,500; two works by Frank Stella for $15,000 and $12,500; and a work by Katharina Grosse for $15,000.
• Bruce Silverstein Gallery sold four works by Sarah Sense for around $140,000 in total.
• Nina Johnson and Candice Madey’s joint solo presentation of works by Patrick Dean Hubbell sold with prices ranging from $16,000–$20,000 per piece.

• Catharine Clark Gallery made a raft of sales including the last artist proof of Stephanie Syjuco’s Phantom Flag (2017/2023) for $15,000 and a complete set of five photogravures from the artist’s “Afterimages” series for $24,000 to a private collection. The gallery also sold 30 embroidered works on paper by Arleene Correa Valencia for $3,500 apiece; and an additional 20 embroidered works on paper, ranging in price from $3,500–$4,200.
• Charles Moffett sold four new paintings by José de Jesús Rodríguez with prices in the range of $14,000–$18,000.
• Galerie EIGEN+ART sold works by Brett Charles Seiler in the $5,000–$16,000 range; and works by Ricarda Roggan in the $3,000–$30,000 range.