Delegates at the conference held in Westminster on September 4 heard that “brown is the new black” and that new buyers to the auction house want to “get away from beige and greige – they want to move away from the hotel room style”.
Boll reported a 26% year-on-year increase in new buyers in the decorative arts category at Christie’s in 2018. He said that despite closing Christie’s South Kensington, the former home of many of the firm’s decorative arts auctions in London, moving sales to King Street and online had boosted sell-through rates.
Observing increased demand in categories such as 18th century French furniture, pietra dura and Italian marbles, he said Christie’s was committed to keeping decorative arts as it is one of the “central parts” of its business.
