Bonhams London Bonhams Paris Bonhams New York Bonhams San Francisco Bonhams Los Angeles Bonhams Hong Kong Bonhams Sydney Bukowskis, Stockholm and Helsinki (acquired January 2022) Bruun Rasmussen, Copenhagen (acquired March 2022) Skinner Boston (acquired March 2022) Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr (acquired June 2022)
Bonhams is a privately owned international auction house and one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. It was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. This brought together two of the four surviving Georgian auction houses in London, Bonhams having been founded in 1793, and Phillips in 1796 by Harry Phillips, formerly a senior clerk to James Christie.
Today, the amalgamated business handles art and antiques auctions. Bonhams operates two salerooms in London—the former Phillips saleroom at 101 New Bond Street, and the old Bonham's saleroom at the Montpelier Galleries in Montpelier Street, Knightsbridge—with a saleroom in Edinburgh. Sales are also held around the world in New York, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Paris, Boston, San Francisco, and Sydney. Bonhams holds more than 450 sales a year in more than 60 collecting areas, including Asian art, pictures, cars and jewellery. Bonhams has more than 1,000 staff with some of the world's leading specialists in their fields.
History
Bonhams was set up in 1793 when Thomas Dodd, an antique print dealer, joined with the book specialist Walter Bonham. The company expanded and by the 1850s was handling all categories of antiques including jewellery, porcelain, furniture, arms and armour, and wine. After returning from the war, in the early 1950s, Leonard Bonham purchased some land in Knightsbridge and erected a saleroom on Montpelier Street. The first sale was held in June 1956.[1]
In 2000, Bonhams became Bonhams & Brooks when it was acquired by Brooks auction house.[2] Brooks had been founded in 1989 by the former Head of Cars at Christie's, Robert Brooks who specialized in the sale of classic and vintage motorcars. Brooks continued a major acquisition programme aimed at creating a new international fine art auction house.
In 2001 Bonhams & Brooks merged with Phillips Son & Neale to form a new UK company trading as Bonhams.[3] Phillips Son & Neale had been based in 101 New Bond Street, which subsequently became the new headquarters of Bonhams. The building consisted of seven different freeholds and had been described as "a Dickensian rabbit warren".[4] The first of the sites to be acquired was Blenstock House, an Art Deco building at the junction of Blenheim Street and Woodstock Street, eventually acquiring the complete building in 1974.
Acquisition activity continued, and in 2002 Bonhams purchased Butterfields, a leading auction house on the West Coast founded in 1865.[5] Bonhams changed Butterfields' name to Bonhams & Butterfields, and Malcolm Barber, formerly of Brooks, became the chief executive officer of the American subsidiary. Bonhams remained the company's brand name outside of the United States.
By the end of 2003 Bonhams was conducting more than 700 annual sales with revenues of $304 million. The company's worldwide network of sales included two major London venues, nine additional UK locations, and salerooms in Australia, Switzerland, Monaco, Germany and the US. Bonhams & Butterfields conducted its first East Coast sale in 2003 with an auction of Edwin C. Jameson's collection of classic cars and antiques in Massachusetts, US.
During 2005, Bonhams expanded further with the opening of the Paris office and a new saleroom in New York.
In October 2005, Bonhams gained full independence after buying back a 49.9% stake held by French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH.
As part of a phased programme of international expansion, Bonhams opened an office in Hong Kong in 2007. Seven years later, in 2014, it established an East Asian HQ and saleroom in Hong Kong in One Pacific Place. Bonhams East Asian and Southeast Asian network includes offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei and Singapore.[6]
In March 2008, Bonhams New York moved to new salerooms on the corner of 57th Street and Madison Avenue, formerly the home of the respected Dahesh Museum of Art.[7] The inaugural sale featured 20th century furniture and decorative arts.
In 2013, Bonhams opened its new headquarters at 101 New Bond Street, designed by Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands; and in 2015 it completed a seven-figure refurbishment of its Knightsbridge saleroom. In 2016, Bonhams held its first online-only auction; the sale of watches from the collection of a European nobleman.[citation needed]
In September 2018, Bonhams was acquired by the UK-based private equity company, Epiris.[8]
In January 2022, Bonhams acquired the Nordic auction house Bukowskis for an undisclosed sum.[9]
in March 2022, Bonhams acquired the US auction house Skinner Inc. for an undisclosed sum. The new company is called Bonhams Skinner.[10] Also in March 2022, Bonhams acquired the Danish auction house, Bruun Rasmussen for an undisclosed sum.[11]
Locations
Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 25 countries. It has three salerooms in the UK; two major salerooms in London – New Bond Street and Knightsbridge, and a saleroom in Edinburgh. Regional offices around the UK offer valuation and consignment services. In Europe, sales are held in France, Monaco and Belgium. In the US, sales are held in New York, Los Angeles and Boston. In Asia-Pacific, sales take place in Bonhams saleroom in Pacific Place, Hong Kong, and in Sydney and Melbourne.
In 2023, Bonhams achieved 14% growth with $1.14 billion in turnover.
La fête d’anniversaire by Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita, sold for £7,096,250, a new world record price at auction for the artist at the Impressionist and Modern Sale at New Bond Street on 11 October 2018.
An important and exceptionally rare set of four huanghuali folding chairs sold for £5,289,250 at the Fine Chinese Art Sale, Bonhams London on 9 November 2017.
A blue and white garlic mouth vase, Yongzheng seal, sold in Hong Kong for HK$76,280,000 (£6,244,187) in 2014.
1962–63 Ferrari 250 GTO Berlinetta, sold at Quail Lodge, California in 2014 for $38,115,000. This was the world record for the most valuable motor car sold at auction until August 2018.
Fragonard's portrait of Francois-Henri, 5th Duc d’Harcourt, achieved £17,106,500 in London in 2013. It remains the most valuable French Rococo painting sold at auction.
A fancy deep-blue 'Trombino' diamond ring was sold for £6,201,250 in London in April 2013.
The ex-Juan Manuel Fangio 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R sold at The Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2013 for £19,600,000
Madonna Laboris, a painting by Russian artist Nikolai Roerich, achieved £7,881,250 in London in 2013.
An ultra-rare, record breaking Vincent Black Lightning sold at Bonhams annual Las Vegas Motorcycle Auction in 2018 became the most valuable motorcycle ever sold at auction. It achieved $929,000 (£651,715 at the time) including buyer's premium.[12]
Further reading
Darwent, Charles, "Bonhams Breaks With Tradition," Management Today, July 1997, p.56.
Meyers, Laura, "Bonhams Goes Global," Art Business News, January 2004, p.42.
Moeran, Brian, "Jousting at Bonhams, London," Ceramics Monthly, January 1990, p.18.
Stanbridge, Philip, "A Hot London Summer," Ceramics Monthly, October 1991, p.28.
Windsor, John, "Stop Press! Art Market Says Size Does Matter," Independent, 8 May 1993, p.34.
Related Research Articles
Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End. Knightsbridge is also the name of the roadway which runs near the south side of Hyde Park from Hyde Park Corner.
Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, and it has additional salerooms in New York, Paris, Hong Kong, Milan, Amsterdam, Geneva, Shanghai, and Dubai. It is owned by Groupe Artémis, the holding company of François Pinault. In 2022 Christie's sold US$8.4 billion in art and luxury goods, an all-time high for any auction house. On 15 November 2017, the Salvator Mundi was sold at Christie's in New York for $450 million to Saudi Prince Badr bin Abdullah Al Saud, the highest price ever paid for a painting.
Sotheby's is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and maintains a significant presence in the UK.
The Stanley Gibbons Group plc is a company quoted on the London Stock Exchange specialising in the retailing of collectable postage stamps and similar products. The group is incorporated in London. The company is a major stamp dealer and philatelic publisher. The company's philatelic subsidiary, Stanley Gibbons Limited, had a royal warrant of appointment from Queen Elizabeth II.
Lyon & Turnbull is a privately owned international auction house located in Scotland. It was established in 1826 and is Scotland’s oldest auction house. The company is the largest independent auction house in the United Kingdom outside of London. The firm has a saleroom in Edinburgh with offices in London and Glasgow.
Skinner was an American auction house headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts. It has been among the world's leading auction houses for antiques and fine art.
François Henri d'Harcourt, 5th Duke of Harcourt was a French general, duke and peer.
Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands is a practice of architects, urban designers and masterplanners established in 1986 and practising out of London.
Art valuation, an art-specific subset of financial valuation, is the process of estimating the market value of works of art. As such, it is more of a financial rather than an aesthetic concern, however, subjective views of cultural value play a part as well. Art valuation involves comparing data from multiple sources such as art auction houses, private and corporate collectors, curators, art dealer activities, gallerists, experienced consultants, and specialized market analysts to arrive at a value. Art valuation is accomplished not only for collection, investment, divestment, and financing purposes, but as part of estate valuations, for charitable contributions, for tax planning, insurance, and loan collateral purposes. This article deals with the valuation of works of fine art, especially contemporary art, at the top end of the international market, but similar principles apply to the valuation of less expensive art and antiques.
Jon Baddeley is a fine art auctioneer, an authority on scientific instruments and collectables, a broadcaster and an author.
MacDougall's is a privately owned international auction house based in London, England. Founded in 2004, it is one of Britain's youngest, but fastest growing auction houses. With around 20 million pounds per year in auction sales, MacDougall's is now the 5th or 6th largest auction house in Britain, and consistently one of the three largest in the world for its speciality: Russian Art. The firm has its salerooms in London and representatives in Paris, Moscow, and Kyiv.
Hamptons is an estate agent that has a UK network of more than 93 branches and an international affiliate partner network of over 7,000 offices. Hamptons' parent company, Countrywide, was acquired by The Connells Group in April 2021.
Slave Labour is a mural that was painted by a British graffiti artist, Banksy, on the side wall of a Poundland store in Wood Green, London in May 2012. The artwork is 48 inches (122 cm) high by 60 inches (152 cm) wide, and depicts an urchin child at a sewing machine assembling a bunting of Union Jack patches. The work was a protest against the use of sweatshops to manufacture Diamond Jubilee and London Olympics memorabilia in 2012.
Phillips, formerly known as Phillips the Auctioneers and briefly as Phillips de Pury, is a British auction house. It was founded in London in 1796, and has head offices in London and in New York City. In 2022 it was owned by the Mercury Group, a Russian luxury goods company.
The Artist as Hephaestus is a bronze statue by Sir Eduardo Paolozzi, created in 1987. It depicts a standing human figure, a self-portrait of Paolozzi 2.64 metres tall, with the left foot advanced as if walking, holding two pierced objects akin to sieves.
Spink & Son is an auction and collectibles company known principally for their sales of coins, banknotes and medals. They also deal in philatelic items, wine and spirits, and other collectible items.
David Bowie owned an extensive private art collection which included paintings, sculpture and furniture. He started collecting art in the mid-1970s and continued through the end of his life. His collection included paintings that he himself painted.
Metropress Limited, trading as Auction Technology Group, is a digital marketplace business listed on the London Stock Exchange. It also publishes Antiques Trade Gazette which is a London-based weekly publication and website serving the art and antiques community and was the original genesis of the business but is now a small proportion of the group’s revenues. The print publication has around 16,000 subscribers (2015). It is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.
References
↑ Cooper, Jeremy (1977). Under the Hammer: The Auctions and Auctioneers of London. London: Constable and Company Limited. p.135.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
