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Charlie’s Angels

It’s been a monumental year for Sotheby’s, which secured nearly $1 billion from the Emiratis, sold the Macklowe and Lauder collections, and made a new home on Madison Avenue. C.E.O. Charles Stewart sits down for a candid discussion about his auction house’s big year and the emerging Gulf market.

Charles Stewart
"The art market has known for a long time that the secondary markets are really important, and that’s been coming to life a little bit on the luxury side. We aim to be front of mind with our global client base, and we need to have that infrastructure and all those relationships in place," says Sotheby's C.E.O. Charles Stewart. Photo: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Puck
Marion Maneker
December 23, 2025

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In the art world, Charles Stewart is a man who needs little introduction. As the C.E.O. of Sotheby’s since 2019, he has guided the auction house through the challenges of Covid as well as the successful sales of the Macklowe, Emily Fisher Landau, and Sydelle Miller collections. Perhaps most crucially, he led the team that secured a nearly $1 billion investment from ADQ, an Emirati sovereign wealth fund; carved out a new flagship gallery in the Breuer Building; and built a bridge between the auction house and the Middle East as much of the art market turns toward that region.