Christie Sells at Art Auction After Sotheby Struggles

The apprehensive art market was set at ease on Wednesday when impressionist and modern art sold as expected at Christie's show.

While Sotheby struggled and failed to sell its best Picasso and Giacometti works the previous night at its auction, Christie sold two Picassos and a Giacometti bronze higher than the estimated price, according to the New York Times.

While 10 of the 48 works were still left unsold, the evening brought in $103 million, well above the expected $88 million, reported Reuters. The 1968 Picasso, Muskateer with Pipe, pulled in $14.6 million, meeting its estimate between $12 million and $18 million. The piece went to a Brussels dealer, Nemo Vedovi, after beating out four other bidders.

On Wednesday, painter and filmmaker Julian Schnabel, also managed to sell Picasso's 1971 painting, Woman Wearing a Hat. The piece brought in $7.8 million, just short of the $8 million to $12 million estimate.

By comparison, Sotheby sold a grand total of $61.3 million on Tuesday, well under the expected numbers.