“…… Don Quixote, living in the present day, may no longer continue to be alone. ”

It has to be said that Howard Norman is an experienced auctioneer who quietly lit up today's auction in such a way.

Generally speaking, the first half of the auction is a warm-up, and the popularity of the auction items is bound to be relatively low-key, which also means that the auction enthusiasm may be limited, and the auctioneer always needs to use some methods to motivate the guests, and now, Howard is quietly doing this.

The smile on the corner of Lan Li's mouth couldn't help but rise, and he approached Matthew slightly, "I remember the last time, I saw a painting in Notting Hill, is it Genevieve Figgis? ”

Matthew chucked his head slightly, "Yes." But I hadn't seen this painting before, and it seemed like a new attempt to create such a bold subject matter. ”

"Yes, Captain" is a bold and original painting that depicts a man and a woman speaking with love, with the woman kneeling in a chair with her legs facing away from the man, while the man is moving from behind with his hands on the other's waist. But there are no specific lines and shapes, but blurred color blocks are used to show the whole pose, especially the man wearing a big red knight's coat, which is particularly eye-catching, and instantly lights up the whole picture.

Lan Li bowed her head slightly.

"What, are you going to make a move?" Andre noticed the interaction between Lan Li and Matthew, and couldn't help asking, "Isn't it good to sell the first auction item directly?"

"If you like it, just do it, isn't this the principle of your life?" Lan Li said unhurriedly—Andre was dumbfounded, he didn't mean that by what he said, but the auction had already begun.

Although it was the first auction item, the atmosphere at the scene was even more enthusiastic than expected, and many guests raised their number plates one after another and began to compete.

Each increase was only fifty pounds, but in less than a minute, the price of "Yes, Captain" soared from two hundred pounds to a thousand pounds, and the pace slowed down slightly.

Aside from the value of the artwork, the fact that the first auction item was able to spark such a boom is a testament to the power of the name "Alexander Hamilton".

In fact, the market estimate for the painting, which should have been around £500 in the light of Lan Li's artistic aesthetic, may have been slightly higher, but very limited, and now it has easily crossed the £1,000 mark, partly because the auction always inspires more competition, and partly because of Alexander's reputation as an organiser, and the guests were more or less willing to make gestures.

At this time, Lan Li raised the sign in his hand for the first time, "Two thousand pounds." ”

simply doubled the price neatly, and then the shouting of all the guests stopped, and all eyes were focused on Lan Li.

It's not because of how terrible the price is—it hasn't entered the end of the word "10,000" yet, but because of Lan Li's decisive first shot.

Howard Norman's gaze fell on Lan Li, still expressionless, but his eyes revealed a look of concern, "Two thousand pounds, Mr. Fourteen offered two thousand pounds, is there anything higher? Is there a higher price on the spot? Two thousand one hundred pounds? Is anyone willing to bid?"

"Two thousand pounds, for the first time. ”

"Two thousand pounds, the second time. ”

"Deal!" 'Yes, Captain', the painting was eventually sold by Mr. Fourteen. ”

The opening was just a warm-up, and the £2,000 was just the beginning of a charity event, and more importantly, because the paintings themselves were also the work of a new generation of painters, the collection value was low, and the competition was not so fierce.

But then, the auction began to get lively.

With the successive debuts of the works, the temperature at the auction site has gradually and steadily risen, and there have been many episodes on the scene.

David Beckham and his wife Victoria-Beckham appeared at the auction and successfully auctioned a replica of street graffiti for 5,000 pounds, which also attracted a lot of attention - Over the years, the Beckhams have been painstakingly managing the connections of the upper class, even if there is no essential breakthrough, but they have also had their own place among the elite, and their appearance today is the best proof of this.

Now it is also foreseeable that the Beckhams must have donated the auction items as well, and it is not known what it is.

Matthew and Eaton also reaped, with Matthew auctioning off a first signed vinyl record of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" for £6,000 and Eton auctioning off a pair of limited-edition Nike sneakers for £4,500.

André was a little depressed, he also took a fancy to two pieces of the collection, but one was intercepted by Princess Beatrice, and the other was preemptively auctioned by Alexander. After all, Andre still didn't go out on the spot, politely let go of the two collections, and didn't linger on anymore.

After all, this is a charity auction, not a real collector's auction. Harmony and heart are the most important - this is also the reason why there are no heavyweight items in competing products, and they are more in the competition than in competition.

After the first phase of warm-up, the second stage of the items is obviously on a higher level, all kinds of long-established artists began to shine, the collection value and market value have skyrocketed, and the auction price has naturally risen.

The first item is Philip-Guston, one of the most famous New York abstract painters, who created a series of works in the seventies and had many influences on future generations, and his peak works were sold at auction for a whopping $600,000 and in recent years, they have been increasingly recognized and their collector's value is gradually increasing.

However, Philip Gaston's work has not yet reached the height of a master, with the current average market estimate ranging from $50,000 to $300,000.

Today, Andre Hamilton donated the painting as the opening work of the second phase, opening the auction with a reserve price of £10,000.

This is also Alexander's arrangement: the first stage, the warm-up, the second stage, the focus, and the third stage, the starlight.

The first stage is easy to understand, the third stage is not difficult – the donations from the Beckhams and Lan Li and others are grouped into this section, which is more of a symbolic meaning than a collection value, and the second stage, which is the essence of the whole auction.

The second stage, where the fewest but most valuable items are the ones that are truly collectible – the elite and the aristocratic families, whether they are rich or up-and-comers, have more or less some works of art worth admiring, not "museum treasures" such as Picasso or Van Gogh, but ordinary works of art that the upper class occasionally communicates with.

Rooney Mara introduced the friends who came, and many of the donated auction items were concentrated at this stage. Although they are considered to be the "nouveau riche" of the second or third generation of the rich, it is undeniable that in order to increase their heritage and connotation, they have also shown a posture of being the last in art collection.

The most obvious example is that the concentration of modern art is the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the collection is even richer than that of Pompidou in Paris.

These new American billionaires are also very happy to appear in London's high social circles, and show their abilities and talents by making these friends, whether it is a sign of admiration or admiration, in short, they go to great lengths to present their collections.

André also donated the "window" he had collected in New York.

This unusual black-and-white painting by Philip Gaston was originally purchased by André for $25,000 and now valued at about $50,000.

Now, Alexander is looking forward to the second phase of the big deal that will raise enough money for the charity.

The reserve price of the auction at the "window" was 10,000 pounds, and the atmosphere was completely different from that of the previous first stage.

Howard Norman had just announced the start of the auction, and the audience raised countless arms in the air, and then the price climbed all the way from 10,000 pounds to 50,000 pounds, but it still did not stop, and continued to climb to 65,000 pounds, and the momentum of live bidding slowed down slightly.

Then, Lan Li shot again, "Seventy thousand." ”

Andre didn't say much, but the corners of his mouth couldn't help but rise: it was natural that the items he donated could be auctioned for an excellent price and add strength to charity. What's more, Matthew and Eaton have just helped with the bidding – even Alexander Hamilton and David Beckham have tried to join the auction, and the cheers from his friends have made Andre straighten his back.

"Seventy-five thousand. ”

Before Andre's mood calmed down, a voice appeared again, coming from the far end of the right hand, he couldn't help leaning his body slightly, glancing at it with the rest of his eyes, but saw an unexpected figure:

Dave Clark.

Andrei's brow furrowed slightly, but then he told himself that this was a charity auction and that it was all about being able to get a better price...... Then Lan Li shouted again, "Eighty thousand." ”

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