Is the Art Market Ready for a Bull Run?

Sotheby's Art Auction
Nearly half of all sales came from the highest-value works, above $5 million—the very sector of the market that had been lacking. Photo: Alive/Courtesy of Sotheby's
Marion Maneker
January 7, 2026

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Wall Power tries to cover the many different auction markets, but as much as I’m interested in the many types of cultural property that trade on vibes, I find fine art is the most interesting. There’s something about the combination of an artist’s ideas and creativity, and the chord that the result strikes with enough people to make it financially valuable. (But, that’s just me.) And though vibes are impossible to quantify, the top of the art market is not—which is exactly why our friends at ARTDAI try to keep track of just the works sold at Sotheby’s, Phillips, and Christie’s.

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