Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Bonhams have canceled their future auctions of Russian art due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This was reported by The Art Newspaper.
"Sotheby's will not be bidding on Russian art in June," the statement said. The auction house also noted that the hearts and minds of the institution are addressed to all those affected by the "Ukrainian crisis". A few hours after Sotheby’s announcement, Christie’s auction house announced that it was canceling June sales of Russian art as well. In turn, Bonhams confirmed that it was also canceling the auction of Russian art, scheduled for 15 July in London.
At the same time, the Phillips auction house does not suspend Russian bidding because it belongs to Russia; last month, it donated 5.8m pounds sterling to the Ukrainian Red Cross from its 20th-century art sale.
Earlier, the Tate group of museums severed ties with Russian oligarchs Viktor Vekselberg (energy tycoon, president of the Skolkovo Foundation, chairman of the board of directors of the Renova Group) and Peter Aven (chairman of the board of directors of Alfa Bank), who financed the network.