The painting „Peasant Girl Resting” by Nicolae Grigorescu was auctioned off on Thursday evening for 365,000 euros at the winter auction organized by Artmark.
According to a statement from Artmark, the sale represents the new record for the Romanian art market (post-1990).
The artwork, an oil on canvas, entered the auction with an initial estimate ranging between 100,000 and 200,000 euros.
The painting breaks the record set in 2018 for Nicolae Grigorescu, of 340,000 euros, for „Peasant Girl with White Headscarf”.
Artmark notes that it is also an artist record, being the best-selling Nicolae Grigorescu in Romania.
Alongside three other works, all auctioned off, Nicolae Grigorescu was the leader of the auction on Thursday evening, accumulating total sales of over half a million euros.
The painting "Shepherd Boy with Flock of Sheep" was auctioned for 95,000 euros, while "Cart with Oxen, from the Field" and "Haymaking" - for 40,000 euros and 50,000 euros, respectively.
Also featured in the auction was the artwork "Concert at the Athenaeum (conducted by George Enescu)", created by Eustaţiu Stoenescu in 1946, depicting the Wagner concerts at the Athenaeum in 1937. The painting was auctioned off for 47,500 euros. This becomes the artist's most valuable auction to date (surpassing the previous record set in 2012 for "The Lamp from Drăghiceni", sold for 36,000 euros).
Artmark specifies that the session had total sales of nearly 1,375,000 euros and an auction rate of approximately 80%.
The upcoming events of the auction house with the theme of Christmas, the jewelry and decorative art segment, and the watches and elegance segment, will take place on Wednesday and Thursday.