Handbags at dawn
AR in Ukraine, perhaps spilling beyond those borders. Cost of living crisis. Looming global famine. Fuel and heating bills going through the roof. And yet the art market marches gaily on, impervious, it seems, to economic headwinds (hurricanes more like). As I sat down to type these opening words, I first checked my emails and saw that overnight, Christie’s New York was trumpeting the staggering results of its 9 June handbags sale. That sale, of course, had an arty name – ‘Handbags Online: the New York Edit’ – otherwise what would differentiate what are in essence astonishingly expensive second-hand handbags from a lucky find at the local charity shop? The auction resulted in 96% of the 194 lots being sold, at 123% over low estimate, bringing in a jaw-dropping $3,299,562. What’s more, 30% of those registering to buy were new to Christie’s. Conclusion? There are obviously a fair few folk still out there with excess money to
