As Art Basel 2025 draws to a close, sales across all sectors underscore the fair’s remarkable diversity. Significant sales started early in the week, with David Hockney’s Mid November Tunnel (2006), sold by Annely Juda Fine Art (London) for USD 13–17 million, and Ruth Asawa’s intricately looped wire sculpture sold by David Zwirner (New York, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Paris) for USD 9.5 million. A painting by Gerhard Richter painting was also sold by the latter for USD 6.8 million, alongside two paintings by Dana Schutz for USD 1.2 million and USD 850,000 each, and a 1979 On Kawara diptych for USD 1.3 million.

At Gladstone Gallery (New York, Brussels, Rome, Seoul), Keith Haring’s sumi ink on woodwork from 1983 was sold for USD 3.5 million, Alex Katz’s Lilies 11 (2025) for USD 1.2 million, and a Robert Rauschenberg collage from 1969 for USD 1.2 million. At Hauser & Wirth (Zurich, Basel, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Somerset, St. Moritz) the two large-scale Mark Bradford paintings that each sold for USD 3.5 million were among the most significant acquisitions of the week. Further sales included a Jack Whitten Cretan walnut and ceramic figure from 1974-1975 which sold for USD 2 million, a Frank Bowling acrylic on canvas from 1975 for USD 1.85 million, a Zeng Fanzhi painting from 2016-2023 which sold for USD 1.6 million to a European foundation, and Louise Bourgeois’s Couple (2002) which sold for USD 1 million to a collection in Asia. Reflecting on the energy of the fair, Hauser & Wirth President Iwan Wirth commented, ‘In a moment of instantaneous PDF sharing and digital everything, Art Basel proves that the greatest rewards come from showing up in person. This is the fair where you are guaranteed to see masterworks you otherwise wouldn’t see, and be reminded of the best art’s ability to ambush ennui and shock the senses back to life.’

The sales of Georg Baselitz across two major galleries – Thaddaeus Ropac (London, Milan, Paris, Salzburg, Seoul) and White Cube (London, Hong Kong, New York, Paris, Seoul) – illustrate a healthy market across different periods and media for the artist, with works placed at EUR 1.8 million to EUR 3 million, including paintings from 1968, 2012, and 2023, and a 2015 bronze sculpture. At Thaddaeus Ropac, an historic Robert Rauschenberg titled Lipstick (Spread), made in 1981 of solvent transfer, acrylic, fabric, and cardboard on wood panel with objects, sold for USD 1.5 million. Also at White Cube, strong sales just under USD 1 million for Lynne Drexler and Sam Gilliam signal growing institutional and collector interest in historically under-recognized 20th-century abstractionists.

Galleries across all sectors saw robust sales at comparable levels. Karma (Los Angeles, New York) sold The Smoke (2017) by Matthew Wong for USD 1.2 million, while Xavier Hufkens (Brussels) placed Tracey Emin’s painting Hunter (2025) for GBP 1 million, while Alice Neel’s oil on canvas, Pink Table (1956) was sold for USD 1 million. Xavier Hufkens remarked, ‘Art Basel once again proved it’s the beating heart of the art world. Collectors acted swiftly from day one, with sales reaching into seven figures. Momentum continued through the weekend, a clear reminder that the market isn’t just holding steady, but picking up speed.’ On day one, Stephen Friedman Gallery (London, New York) set a record with the sale of female Native American artist and activist, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith’s mixed media on canvas work titled I See Red: Indian Heart (1993) for USD 750,000–1 million. Galeria Plan B (Berlin, Cluj-Napoca) sold a new painting by Adrian Ghenie for EUR 1 million, reflecting strong demand for the Romanian painter.

Unlimited saw robust institutional and collector interest for large-scale and ambitious works. Larry Poons’s forty-feet long painting, The Outerlands (2022), was sold by Yares Art (New York, Los Angeles) for USD 1.2 million. Claudia Martínez Garay’s mural Conversiones (2025) was acquired by the Pérez Art Museum Miami for EUR 90,000, in a major institutional acquisition for Grimm (Amsterdam, London, New York). Arman’s monumental work Captain Nemo (1996) made of sliced and rewelded copper perfume stills was placed for USD 1–2 million by Galerie Georges-Philippe & Nathalie Vallois (Paris, New York). Four iterations of Danh Vo’s politically resonant In God We Trust (2025) were sold for EUR 250,000 each by White Cube.

Several institutions made key acquisitions that affirm the fair’s curatorial significance. Thaddaeus Ropac sold James Rosenquist’s Playmate (1966) for USD 1.8 million to a European institution and White Cube sold Cai Guo-Qiang’s explosive Red Birds (2022) for USD 1.2 million to another European museum. James Cohan Gallery (New York) placed Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s Heavy Dragon (2025) with a US museum for USD 85,000, alongside sales of Josiah McElheny and Kathy Butterly to US and European foundations. Jordan Nassar’s Beyond our mountains (2024), a hand-embroidered textile blending Palestinian and Western traditions, sold for USD 22,000 to an African foundation.

The Statements sector, dedicated to emerging artists, saw strong institutional and collector engagement. Felix Gaudlitz (Vienna) sold Edith Deyerling’s large-format diptych for EUR 22,000 and a smaller canvas for EUR 5,300. Eli Kerr (Montreal) placed two editions of Periodic Sights (2025) by Lebanese-Canadian artist Joyce Joumaa – winner of this year’s Baloise Art Prize – with MUDAM for EUR 40,000–60,000, alongside other works which sold for under EUR 5,000. Eli Kerr remarked, ‘We’ve had a great week here in our first showing at Art Basel. Joyce Joumaa was awarded the Baloise Prize and we made multiple museum placements while also starting new dialogs with numerous top curators and institutions. Our Statements debut has been a step forward for the gallery, which is less than three years old, and we are grateful for the opportunity to bring this ambitious and powerful work by Joumaa to a global audience in Basel.’ Soft Opening (London) placed all works by Rhea Dillon for GBP 14,000–15,000 each. Dillon was also awarded the Baloise Art Prize, affirming her rising stature. sans titre (Paris) sold over a dozen works combining ceramics with wooden marquetry by Wei Libo, all at EUR 6,000 or below, highlighting a collector interest for contemporary art rooted in traditional crafts.

In the Feature section, dedicated to curated historical presentations by 20th-century artists, Pippy Houldsworth Gallery (London) placed two major canvases by Judith Godwin, titled Polar Night (1994) for USD 195,000 and Duet with Hofmann (1953) for USD 150,000. Jessica Silverman (San Francisco) had a strong outing with a suite of Judy Chicago works selling to collectors and institutions, including Pasadena Lifesavers (1970), acquired by a West Coast museum for USD 400,000, and multiple ‘Fan’ and ‘Dome Drawing’ works on paper sold for between USD 50,000–300,000.

Art Basel 2025 has proved its global reach and market depth, as well as its importance as a site where historic and emerging voices intersect. With strong sales across four to eight figures and placements in both private and institutional collections worldwide, the fair demonstrated its ability to unite generations, geographies, and market tiers.