A painting by Ivan Marchuk was sold at Sotheby’s for €96,000
This is reported on the Sotheby’s website.
A painting by Ukrainian People’s Artist Ivan Marchuk, entitled “The Generous Planet”, was sold at a Sotheby’s auction. The painting went under the hammer for 96,000 euros.
The work was created in 1994. The Sotheby’s website states that it is an oil on canvas measuring 91 by 91 cm. The lot’s pre-sale estimate was €40,000–€60,000.
Prior to the sale, “The Generous Planet” was in a private collection in the United States. The name of the painting’s new owner has not been disclosed.
Marchuk’s record at Sotheby’s
At Sotheby’s, “The Generous Planet” became Ivan Marchuk’s most expensive work ever sold.
Previously, the landscape “Peace Has Settled Here” was sold at Sotheby’s for over €76,000. The works “Village in the Moonlight” and “They Flew to the Sky” were also sold for €40,000 and €44,000 respectively.
However, the absolute record for the sale of a Marchuk work on the Ukrainian art market remains higher. In 2024, at the Goldens auction in Kyiv, the painting “The Moon Has Risen Over the Dnipro” was sold for $250,000. The total amount, including taxes and the artist’s royalty, was $300,000.
What is known about Ivan Marchuk
Ivan Marchuk is a People’s Artist of Ukraine, a winner of the Shevchenko Prize and one of the most expensive Ukrainian artists.
He developed his own painting technique – “plontanism”. Its essence lies in the layering of fine lines, from which a unique composition of colour and light is formed.
The artist’s oeuvre comprises around 5,000 works. In 2007, Marchuk was included in the British newspaper the Daily Telegraph’s list of “100 Geniuses of the Modern Age”, where he ranked 72nd.
In 2021, the artist received the Presidential Award “National Legend of Ukraine”. In May 2026, Ivan Marchuk turned 90.
Exhibition marking the artist’s 90th birthday
A permanent exhibition of Ivan Marchuk’s works has also opened in Kyiv at the “Chocolate House” Art Centre.
The exhibition “Ivan Marchuk. Museum Collections” opened on 12 May. It featured works from the collections of eleven museum institutions in Kyiv, Lviv, Sumy, Lutsk, Ivano-Frankivsk and Kaniv.
A total of 40 works were displayed, spanning the period from the late 1960s to the present day. Three new works were presented separately; these were painted by Marchuk in Vienna in 2024 and donated specifically for this exhibition.
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