Coarse skin, matchstick-thin, and oozing existential dread—the signature of Alberto Giacometti is unmistakable. Born in Borgonovo, Switzerland, in 1901, Giacometti captivated the interest and imagination of his artistic peers and patrons with a career of remarkable transformation: from his early Surrealist experiments to his explorations of ancient Egyptian-inspired forms, to the postwar period when isolation, anxiety, and human fragility came to define his spindly cast of figures.
“The object of art is not to reproduce reality, but to create a reality of the same intensity,” Giacometti once said.
Since his death in 1966, Giacometti’s appeal has only grown, with major museums and private collectors alike competing for the rare opportunity to acquire one of his coveted bronzes when they appear at auction. Such offerings are accompanied by intense market speculation and global attention: Which deep-pocketed collector will emerge victorious from the bidding war? Will the artist’s already astronomical auction records hold—or shatter, as they have time and again?
Below, explore Swiss master’s top ten auction results, a list that traces his meteoric rise from the upper echelons of the market to the rarefied realm of nine-figure sculpture sales. (And, yes, if you were wondering, a Giacometti work does place on our top 10 list of the most expensive artworks ever sold at auction.)
