The sale of “Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer” topped a previous record for 20th-century art set by an Andy Warhol portrait of Marilyn Monroe that sold for $195 million in 2022

A Gustav Klimt painting that helped save the life of its Jewish subject during the Holocaust sold for $236.4 million, a record for a modern art piece.

The auction house’s debut at the Breuer was defined by Gustav Klimt’s late portrait soaring to $236.4 million, anchoring the $527.5 million white-glove sale of the Leonard A. Lauder

Sotheby's sold an astonishing $706 million worth of art in New York on Tuesday night. Katya Kazakina crunched the numbers.

What does a notorious gold toilet and a nearly destroyed Gustav Klimt work have in common? They christened Sotheby’s first sale out of its new US headquarters in New York on Tuesday in a buzzy, record-breaking night.

Art experts and auction houses say the market is being boosted by a renewed sense of optimism among collectors and by several top collections coming to market.Gustav Klimt's "Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" sold at Sotheby's Tuesday night for $236.

Leonard Lauder Collection helped Sotheby's reach the highest evening total in its history. A Klimt portrait fetched $236.4 million.

The $706m total for the night included a white-glove sale of 24 lots from the collection of late cosmetics heir Leonard Lauder

The auction house makes itself at home in the landmark Breuer building.

The fall auction sales in New York next week are expected to top $1.4 billion, marking a 50% increase from last year, according to art experts.