A Dreary Night for Contemporary Art at Sotheby's

A Dreary Night for Contemporary Art at Sotheby's

In a salesroom overflowing with collectors like the actor Steve Martin, the financier Eli Broad and the fashion designer Valentino, Sotheby's barely managed to sell $125.1 million worth of contemporary art on Tuesday night, well below the low estimate of $202.4 million.

"It was a half-price sale," said Mr. Broad, who went on his first shopping spree in several years. In less than 90 minutes, he dropped more than $8 million (including Sotheby's fees) on works by Ed Ruscha, Jeff Koons, Robert Rauschenberg and Donald Judd.

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