Presenting some of the most compelling voices of our time, these young artists define the present with dazzling range and authority. From the figurative dreamscapes of Hernan Bas and Daniel Richter, to the intimate portraiture of Yu Nishimura and Ser Serpas, and the kaleidoscopic abstractions of Lucy Bull and Emma McIntyre, their works vibrate with urgency and allure. Moving fluidly between intimacy and spectacle, they shape a canon still in the making.

Today’s most vital voices redefine the language of painting.

The Contemporary Canon

From the gleam of gold and metal to the scorched and slashed surface, this October, Sotheby’s Evening Auction celebrates artists who transform canvas into spectacle. Jean-Michel Basquiat and El Anatsui dazzle with metallic resonance; Anselm Kiefer conjures alchemical surfaces; Yves Klein harnesses fire as medium; and Lucio Fontana punctures the picture plane with radical clarity. Joining this lineage of artists whose brilliance continues to shape contemporary art history, Matthew Wong’s iridescent and jewel-like surfaces mesmerise with incandescent luminosity.

From the shimmer of gold to fire and flame, material visionaries transform surface into spectacle.

Material Brilliance

From Gerald Laing’s striking fan-shaped Pop canvas to Frank Auerbach’s charged portrait Head of Laurie Owen I, this chapter brings together works that exemplify the strength and range of British art. Paula Rego’s psychologically charged Snow White Playing with her Father’s Trophies and Jenny Saville’s commanding Muse on Stool (Study) show the fearless innovation that continues to make British figuration among the most sought-after on the global stage.

Laing, Auerbach, Rego and Saville embody Britain’s uncompromising vision

The British Edge

Bacon’s adaptation and interpretation of other artists’ work was that of a magpie peering through a shattered lens. He drew on a huge array of source material, from news cuttings and photographs of friends to the works of the Old Masters, allusions that were largely oblique. His interests were always fragmented, collaged and reconsidered. And his time in France was a period in which his paintings were imbued with the essence of great historical precedent, not least that of the hand of Rodin. In one of the photographs of Bacon visiting the museum at Meudon, we see the painter peering into the cavernous hole of a headless figure of a man, one of Rodin’s vast collection of antiquities. Bacon is engrossed in the void, just as one can imagine Rodin would been surveying that same cavity in his fin-de-siecle days. Two artists, two visions, but with the shared aim of capturing the “brutality of fact” and looking to the past for inspiration.

Bacon and Rodin lay bare the drama of the body.

Bacon/Rodin: Dialogues in Flesh and Form

London

Taking place on 16 October, Sotheby’s Contemporary Evening Auction will coincide with the world-renowned Frieze and Frieze Masters art fairs. Aligned with these landmark events in London's artworld calendar, our October sales are our most dynamic of the year. To celebrate this, Sotheby's Evening Auction will offer a stellar presentation of works from the very top tier of post-war and Contemporary art practitioners. Presented by

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Taking place on 16 October, Sotheby’s Contemporary Evening Auction will coincide with the world-renowned Frieze and Frieze Masters art fairs. Aligned with these landmark events in London's artworld calendar, our October sales are our most dynamic of the year. To celebrate this, Sotheby's Evening Auction will offer a stellar presentation of works from the very top tier of post-war and Contemporary art practitioners. Presented by CELINE.