The Price of the Hammer Keeps Climbing, and New York Is Still Buying

For anyone bidding this season, the cost of buying at auction is still going up: the buyer's premium charged on top of the hammer price has climbed again. At Christie's, the house is adding to its roster with a department that did not exist before. In New York, the Armory Show has put fresh work into new hands, and the question of who bought what is now part of the season's talk. It is a useful moment for collectors to read the fine print before raising a paddle, and to watch how the houses organize themselves around what people want to own.

With reporting from Artnet News.