Christie's facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Christie's

Christie's in King Street, St James's
Type	Subsidiary
Industry	Art, auctions
Founded	1766; 259 years ago (1766)
Founder	James Christie
Headquarters	London , England
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	François Pinault (owner) Guillaume Cerutti (CEO)
Revenue	US$6.2 billion (2023)
Parent	Groupe Artémis

Christie's American branch at Rockefeller Center in New York

Christie's is a very famous British company that sells art and other valuable items. It's known as an auction house. It was started in 1766 by a man named James Christie.

Christie's main office is in London, England. But they also have big salesrooms in cities all over the world. These include New York, Paris, Hong Kong, and Dubai. The company is owned by Groupe Artémis, which belongs to François Pinault. In 2022, Christie's sold art and luxury items worth $8.4 billion. This was the most money any auction house had ever made! One amazing sale happened in 2017. A painting called Salvator Mundi by Leonardo da Vinci was sold for $450 million. This was the highest price ever paid for a painting.

How Christie's Began

In A Peep at Christies (1799), James Gillray showed people looking at paintings.

The company says that its founder, James Christie, held his first sale in London on December 5, 1766. We know this from their old records. But some people think he started even earlier. There are old newspaper ads for Christie's sales from 1759. After James Christie passed away, his son, James Christie the Younger, took over the family business.

Christie's in the 1900s

An old picture of Christie's auction room from 1808.

For many years, from 1973 to 1999, Christie's was a public company. This meant anyone could buy shares in it on the London Stock Exchange. In 1977, Christie's held its first sale in the United States. The company slowly grew bigger and more successful. By 1989, it handled 42% of all art auctions.

In 1996, Christie's sales were higher than those of its main competitor, Sotheby's. This was the first time that had happened since 1954. In 1998, a company called Groupe Artémis bought Christie's. It cost about $1.2 billion. Since then, Christie's has not been a public company.

Christie's in the 2000s

An ancient clay tablet sold by Christie's in 1989.

In 2002, Christie's held its first auction in Paris, France. Christie's also started doing more private sales. This means they would sell art directly to a buyer without a public auction.

Over time, the types of art that sold for the most money changed. In the 1980s, paintings by Impressionist artists were very popular. But by 2012, modern art became the most popular category at Christie's. Art from Asia was also a very important part of their business.

In 2021, Christie's Paris held a special sale. It was the first time they focused only on art made by women artists. In 2022, Christie's had its best year ever. They sold $8.4 billion worth of art and luxury items.

Where Christie's Is Located

Christie's has offices in 46 countries around the world. They have main salesrooms in big cities like London, New York, Paris, and Hong Kong.

In Europe

Christie's main salesroom is in London, on King Street. They have been there since 1823. They used to have another salesroom in London called South Kensington. It closed in 2017. This was partly because they wanted to focus more on online sales.

In the Americas

In 1977, Christie's opened its first international office in New York City. In 1997, they moved to a very large space in Rockefeller Center. This space is about 300,000 square feet. Christie's also opened a salesroom in Beverly Hills, California, in 1997.

In Asia

Christie's has had an office in Hong Kong since 2014. They plan to move to a new, even bigger building in Hong Kong in 2024. This new space will be huge, with over 50,000 square feet. It will be similar in size to their London headquarters.

Famous Auctions

Christie's has sold many amazing and valuable items over the years. Here are some of the most famous:

• In 1848, they sold everything from Stowe House. This included the Chandos portrait of William Shakespeare.
• In 1987, Vincent van Gogh's Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers sold for $39.9 million. This made it the most expensive painting in the world at that time.
• In 1989, a painting by Pontormo called Portrait of a Halberdier sold for $35.2 million. This was a record for an Old Master painting.
• In 1994, Bill Gates bought the Codex Leicester, a notebook by Leonardo da Vinci, for over $30 million.
• In 2001, Elton John sold 20 of his cars at Christie's. He said he didn't drive them much. The sale made almost £2 million.
• In 2006, a rare Stradivarius violin called The Hammer sold for $3,544,000. This was a record for a musical instrument.
• In 2009, Christie's sold the huge art collection of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé. It made a record-breaking 370 million euros.
• In 2010, Pablo Picasso's Nude, Green Leaves and Bust sold for $106.5 million.
• In 2012, the silver cup given to the first modern Olympic marathon winner, Spyridon Louis, sold for over £541,000. This was a record for Olympic items.
• In 2013, Francis Bacon's Three Studies of Lucian Freud sold for $142.4 million.
• In 2015, Pablo Picasso's Les Femmes d'Alger ("Version O") sold for $179.3 million. This made it the most expensive artwork ever sold at Christie's New York.
• In 2017, Leonardo da Vinci's Salvator Mundi sold for a record $450.3 million.
• In 2020, Christie's sold Stan, a very complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton, for $31.8 million. This was a new world record for a dinosaur skeleton.
• In 2022, Andy Warhol's Shot Sage Blue Marilyn painting sold for $195 million. This made it the most expensive American artwork and 20th-century artwork ever sold at auction.
• Also in 2022, Christie's auctioned the art collection of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. It was the biggest art auction ever, selling for over $1.5 billion. Many paintings sold for more than $100 million each.

Art Storage Services

Christie's also has a special business called Christie's Fine Art Storage Services (CFASS). This company stores valuable art for other people. In 2010, they opened a huge storage building in New York. It has very high-tech security and keeps the art at the perfect temperature and humidity.

Learning and Other Projects

Christie's used to offer master's degree programs in art. They still offer other courses and classes in London, New York, Hong Kong, and Amsterdam. You can also take online classes. They have special certificates in Art Business and Luxury.

Christie's also works with the Art Loss Register. This is a database used by police around the world. It helps them find and get back stolen art.

Leaders of Christie's

Here are the people who have been in charge of Christie's since François Pinault's company bought it:

• 1999–2010: Edward Dolman
• 2010–2014: Steven Murphy
• 2014–2017: Patricia Barbizet
• 2017–present: Guillaume Cerutti

Images for kids

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  Portrait of a Halberdier by Pontormo, sold in 1989.

See also

In Spanish: Christie's para niños