Sotheby’s has landed a major prize for its May 13 modern art evening sale in New York: Grande tête mince (Grande tête de Diego), a 1955 bronze bust by Alberto Giacometti, estimated at more than $70 million.
The work was hand-painted by the artist as a tribute to his brother Diego, Giacometti’s lifelong muse and studio assistant. It is the most high-profile lot announced so far for the spring auctions, exceeding a Piet Mondrian painting, estimated to sell for around $50 million, that will appear at Christie’s as part Leonard Riggio collection, which that house clinched back in February.
Next month’s sales will be a crucial test for the art market. Auction totals have declined for two consecutive years amid global economic uncertainty, and concerns over tariffs and stock market volatility have deepened the mood of caution. Few estates have consigned major works, and according to market watchers, many private sellers are opting to sit out.
The 25-inch-tall bust is being offered anonymously, but according to Artnet News, it comes from the estate of real estate magnate Sheldon Solow, who died in 2020. It’s being sold through the Soloviev Foundation, the nonprofit established by Solow’s son, Stefan Soloviev.
The sculpture was exhibited at the 1956 Venice Biennale and remained on view for nearly two decades at the Fondation Maeght in southern France before Solow acquired it from Galerie Maeght in 1980, according to the Sotheby’s.
Simon Shaw, Sotheby’s senior adviser for Impressionist and modern art, described Grande tête mince as one of Giacometti’s most formally radical and emotionally charged works. Shaw noted the rarity of this particular cast—the only known version with a richly painted surface—and emphasized its “profound meditative presence,” according to Artnet News.
The bust is one of six casts. Market precedent is strong: another version sold for $53 million at Christie’s in 2010, and another brought $50 million at Sotheby’s in 2013. (Final prices include fees; presale estimates do not.)
The higher estimate this time reflects both the quality of this specific cast and Giacometti’s rising market profile Shaw told Artnet News. In 2015, Pointing Man sold for $141.3 million, setting a record for both Giacometti and any sculpture at auction, while Le Nez fetched $78.4 million more recently. (Back in February, that sculpture became the center of a legal battle between collectors Justin Sun and David Geffen.)
Grande tête mince (Grande tête de Diego) will be on public view at Sotheby’s New York galleries from May 2 through May 13, ahead of its appearance in its modern art evening sale.
According to Artnet News, the Soloviev Foundation has pledged two other major works—Amedeo Modigliani’s Almaisa (1916) and Mark Rothko’s Untitled (Red, Orange, Red), from 1967—as collateral for a loan through Christie’s art financing program. Two private dealers familiar with the works told the outlet they would be estimated together at around $100 million.
