Hockney Paintings Draw $8.5 Million Sale at Art Basel as Post-Death Demand Jumps 1,200%
Updated
Updated · observer.co.uk · Jun 22
Hockney Paintings Draw $8.5 Million Sale at Art Basel as Post-Death Demand Jumps 1,200%
3 articles · Updated · observer.co.uk · Jun 22
Summary
$8.5 million bought Hockney’s 2014 “Studio Interior #2” at Art Basel, where dealers reported a sharp rush for works by the artist after his death earlier this month at 88.
MyArtBroker said collector demand for Hockney rose more than 1,200% in the 48 hours after his death, a pattern art economist Clare McAndrew described as a typical posthumous “supply grab.”
Annely Juda offered “Delphiniums on My Garden Table, July 2025” for $12 million, while Pace held back an iPad painting for Art Basel’s new Basel Exclusive section to create surprise around the release.
The Hockney surge stood out against a sluggish broader market, with galleries citing high fair costs—booths can reach $120,000—and weak growth in new collectors as pressure points.