New York auctions, November 2026: a 450 million dollar collection at Sotheby's and Bill Koch at Christie's
Sotheby's offers the Blaquier-Arrieta collection on 18 November 2026, with about 450 million dollars expected and a house guarantee. Christie's brings more than 40 million dollars from Bill Koch. Lots, estimates, dates.
Twelve paintings, about 450 million dollars. Sotheby's will sell the collection of the late Argentine collectors Carlos Pedro Blaquier and Nelly Arrieta de Blaquier in New York on 18 November 2026 at 6 pm, and expects it to reach around that figure, USA Art News reported on 30 September 2026. Sotheby's has guaranteed the sale. It has not said for how much.
Two works carry most of the weight. Vincent van Gogh's flowering chestnut trees, painted in May 1890 at Auvers-sur-Oise, is expected at around 180 million dollars; Sotheby's lists it with estimate on request. The van Gogh auction record is about 117 million dollars, for Orchard with Cypresses at Christie's in 2022. A late Harlequin by Paul Cézanne is expected at around 120 million dollars, which would also be a record for the artist. Published estimates for the rest: Camille Pissarro's Place du Théâtre-Français, 30 to 40 million dollars; Pierre-Auguste Renoir's En Canot, 25 to 35 million; Claude Monet's Le Jardin des Tuileries, 15 to 20 million.
The rest of Sotheby's week. The Now and Contemporary Evening Auction on 16 November is led by Roy Lichtenstein's Reflections on Painter and Model at 20 to 30 million dollars, with a Francis Bacon self-portrait and Yayoi Kusama's No. 3P.B. both at 10 to 15 million. The Modern Evening Auction follows the Blaquier sale on 18 November at 7 pm, with Paul Signac's Collioure. Les Balancelles at 12 to 18 million and Edgar Degas's Trois danseuses (Jupes jaunes) at 10 to 15 million. The exhibition opens on 7 November at 945 Madison Avenue.
Christie's has Bill Koch. The collector is consigning works expected to bring more than 40 million dollars, according to USA Art News on 26 October 2026. Monet's Champ d'avoine et coquelicots, 1890, which Koch bought in 1985, is estimated at 12 to 18 million dollars. Cézanne's Tasse, verre et fruits, around 1877, has a top estimate of 18 million. Both go into the 20th Century Evening Sale; works by Degas, Matisse, Miró and Diego Rivera are spread across the day sales. Koch had already sold 84 million dollars of American art at Christie's in January.
For scale: Christie's 20th Century Evening Sale in November 2025 made 471.7 million dollars, according to HENI. The Blaquier collection alone is expected to come close.
The lot to watch is the van Gogh. At 180 million dollars it would beat the record by more than 60 million. With a guarantee in place it sells either way; what the room decides is whether the price stops at the guarantor or goes past it.
Results for Monet, Cézanne, Degas and van Gogh can be followed on Unicorn Art Watch. Unicorn Art Club works differently: members commit at least 100,000 dollars to one artist and the club buys a work through a dedicated vehicle, as the guide among the sources explains.
Investing involves the risk of losing capital.
Sources
- USA Art News, Blaquier-Arrieta Impressionist collection eyes $450 million at Sotheby's New York, 30 September 2026
- Sotheby's, The New York Sales, November 2026: dates, lots and estimates
- USA Art News, Bill Koch to offer $40 million in art at Christie's, led by Monet and Cézanne, 26 October 2026
- ARTnews, Bill Koch to sell more than $40M in art at Christie's, led by Monet and Cézanne paintings, October 2026
- HENI, Monet leads Christie's $472m 20th Century Evening Sale in New York, 17 November 2025
- Unicorn Art Club, guide: how to invest in blue-chip art through Unicorn Art Club