Australia’s first curated fine art auction went off with a bang last night, with strong prices achieved and an artist’s record broken at Bonhams’ Sydney sale. The saleroom was buzzing with bidders on the phone, internet and in-house as the sale made $3.89 million including buyers premium, with 85 percent sold by lot and 110 percent sold by value. A record-breaking price was achieved for John Wardell Power’s Basket of Fruit, c.1936, which was recently discovered in a flea-market in The Netherlands and repatriated to Australia by Bonhams. It fetched $170,800 IBP, more than triple the artist’s previous auction record. Standout lots from the curated portion of the sale – brought to market by respected art adviser John Cruthers – included Fred Williams’ Gum Trees in Landscape II, 1966, which fetched $366,000 IBP, Grace Cossington Smith’s Blue Glass, 1927 which sold

Read More: Record price for flea-market find at Bonhams’ Sydney auction