Billionaire's Collection Sells for $392.6M; a Modigliani Bought for $12.4M Sold for $63.9M; Versace's CEO Steps Down

June 25: Billionaire's Collection Sells for $392.6M; a Modigliani Bought for $12.4M Sold for $63.9M; Versace's CEO Steps Down
The art collection of British billionaire Joe Lewis smashes records at Sotheby's, led by a 63.9 million dollar Modigliani he bought for 12.4 million in 1995; the CEO of Versace resigns; the rug from The Big Lebowski heads to auction; and the luxury market steadies after a wild week.

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The Lewis Collection: A Record Night
- The collection of British billionaire Joe Lewis sold at Sotheby's London for 392.6 million dollars, a record for a single-owner sale anywhere in Europe and nearly double its estimate. Just one of 25 lots failed to sell, and the house guaranteed none of them, a real vote of confidence at the top of the market.
- The top lot: Modigliani's 1917 "Seated Nude Wearing a Necklace" (Nu assis au collier) at 63.9 million dollars, a European auction record for the artist. Lewis had bought it at Christie's in 1995 for 12.4 million dollars, a more than five-fold gain over 31 years.

From Our Data
- The strength at the top isn't new. The most valuable fine-art result in our database over the past year is a 43.8 million dollar Canaletto view of Venice (Christie's), with a tight cluster of eight-figure modern masters just behind. Trophy names with clean provenance keep clearing big numbers, even as the middle of the market turns choosier.

Luxury Business: A Change at Versace
- Versace CEO Emmanuel Gintzburger has resigned. Versace was acquired by the Prada Group last year, and a leadership change was widely expected as Prada integrates the brand, another sign of consolidation at the top of Italian luxury.

Quick Hits
- The actual rug from "The Big Lebowski," the one that "really tied the room together," is heading to auction (Robb Report).
- Wealthy buyers are flocking to Spain, treating prime real estate as a haven from war and turmoil (Reuters).

The Markets: A Quiet Open
- After a whipsawing week, European luxury opened quietly mixed: Hermès and Kering edged up (about 0.25% and 0.9%), while LVMH and Richemont slipped slightly. A calm open is its own kind of good news.

Also from ALT/FNDATA:
- Auto Market — out today (Thursday)
- Closing Price — this evening at 5 PM ET
- Open Bid returns tomorrow at 6 AM ET

Creators and Guests

Host

Sharon Obuobi

What is Open Bid — Daily Morning Briefing on Auctions, Luxury & Markets?

Open Bid is your weekday-morning briefing on the world of luxury and collectibles. In under five minutes, host Sharon Obuobi covers the biggest stories across fine art, jewelry, watches, handbags, and collector cars — the record auction results, the moves inside the luxury houses, and what the markets are doing that morning — all backed by proprietary data from ALT/FNDATA. Whether you collect, invest, or just love this world, it's the fastest way to start the day informed.

Learn more at www.altfndata.com.

OPEN BID — Thursday, June 25, 2026

[INTRO]

Good morning. It's Thursday, June 25. I'm Sharon, and this is Open Bid from ALT/FNDATA.

Today we cover the story of a British billionaire's art collection smashes records at Sotheby's, led by a 63.9 million dollar Modigliani that he bought for a fraction of that price more than 30 years ago. The chief executive of Versace has stepped down, the rug from The Big Lebowski heads to auction, and the luxury market finally steadies after a wild week. Plus our weekly Auto Market is out today.

[THE LEWIS COLLECTION, A RECORD NIGHT]

We begin with a blockbuster night in the saleroom. In London, the art collection of the British billionaire Joe Lewis sold at Sotheby's for 392.6 million dollars. That is a record for a single-owner sale anywhere in Europe, and it came in at nearly double the pre-sale estimate. The star of the night was a 1917 nude by Amedeo Modigliani, titled "Seated Nude Wearing a Necklace," which fetched 63.9 million dollars, the most ever paid for a Modigliani at auction in Europe.

And here is the number that should catch every collector's eye. Lewis bought that very painting at Christie's back in 1995, for 12.4 million dollars. So across 31 years, it appreciated more than five-fold. Just one of the 25 lots failed to find a buyer, and, Sotheby's put none of its own money on the line to guarantee the results.

[FROM OUR DATA]

And our data shows just how thin the air gets at that altitude. In a full year of results, only a small club of names reaches the top tier of fine art at all, the Picassos, the Basquiats, a Canaletto at the very top near 44 million dollars. Last night, Modigliani did not just join that club, it set a new high mark above every one of them. We can see that the pattern is not changing. A few trophy names with spotless provenance keep climbing, while the market beneath them turns more and more selective.

[LUXURY BUSINESS, A CHANGE AT VERSACE]

In the business of fashion, there is a change at the top of Versace. The house's chief executive, Emmanuel Gintzburger, has resigned. The timing is not a surprise. Versace was bought by the Prada Group last year, and a leadership reshuffle was widely expected as Prada folds the brand into its stable and sets about a turnaround. It is one more sign of the consolidation reshaping the upper end of Italian luxury.

[QUICK HITS]

A couple of lighter notes to round things out.

First, for fans of a certain cult film: the actual rug from The Big Lebowski, the one that, in the movie's words, really tied the room together, is heading to auction.

And in the property market, Reuters reports that wealthy buyers are flocking to Spain, treating prime real estate there as a haven from war and global turmoil. In uncertain times, hard assets of various kinds tend to catch a bid.

[THE MARKETS, A QUIET OPEN]

Finally, a quick word on the markets, which mercifully calmed down.

After a brutal, whipsawing week of a deepening tech selloff and then a sharp luxury rebound, the European luxury names opened quietly mixed this morning.

Hermès and Kering edged higher, by about 0.25 and 0.9 percent, while LVMH and Richemont slipped about 0.4 and 1 percent.

After the drama of the past few days, a quiet open is its own kind of good news.

[OUTRO]

That's it on Open Bid for today, Thursday, June 25. Our weekly Auto Market is also out today, with the Ferrari that rules our collector-car database, and Closing Price follows this evening.

For more insights on the top stories in today's Open Bid, check out the ALT/FNDATA market index and datasets, which track results across the art and collectibles markets we follow. You can start for free in our data sandbox. To get started, reach us on our website, or by email at [e-mail].

Subscribe to get notified of new episodes, and if you love the show, please leave us a five-star rating on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

I'm Sharon, from ALT/FNDATA. I'll talk with you in the next episode.