A $100 Million Modigliani Leads Art Basel Paris as the Market's Big Week Unfolds

Amedeo Modigliani's 1917 painting Nu étendu (Lolotte) is on offer at Art Basel Paris for an asking price north of $100 million — the most expensive work reported at the fair so far. The seller is Pace Di Donna Schrader. That figure anchors a week of gallery signings, estate deals and curatorial appointments that keeps the art trade's rumor mill fully fed.

The painting carries real pedigree. It appeared in Modigliani's only solo exhibition during his lifetime, at Galerie Berthe Weill in Paris in 1917. The family of its present owner bought it from the artist's dealer in 1920. This presentation marks the work's return to the market after roughly a century — a hiatus few living collectors can match.

It's not an isolated event. Last week Phillips announced it will offer a rare limestone sculpture by Modigliani at its New York sales in November, carrying a $35 million estimate. Two major Modiglianis surfacing within a week is a pattern, not a coincidence. Modigliani momentum is clearly in the air, as the ARTnews trade roundup that first reported these moves put it.

Who is representing whom this week?

The week's roster of industry moves, as compiled by ARTnews:

• Vielmetter Los Angeles takes on Patrick Eugène. The Brooklyn-born, Atlanta-based painter, whose figurative work draws on his Haitian heritage, will debut with the gallery at Art Basel Miami Beach in December, ahead of a solo exhibition in Los Angeles in fall 2027.
• Ruiz-Healy Art now represents half the Mel Casas estate. The San Antonio– and New York–based gallery holds exclusive representation of 50 percent of the Chicano painter's estate (1929–2014), in partnership with three of his children. Solo exhibitions at both gallery locations are planned for 2027.
• Qatar Museums has named Azu Nwagbogu artistic director of Tasweer 2027. The writer and curator, a founder of the LagosPhoto Biennale and founder-director of the Lagos non-profit African Artists' Foundation, will lead the fourth edition of the Doha-based photography biennial.
• The John Michael Kohler Arts Center and Kohler Co. announced their 2027 Arts/Industry residency artists. The twelve residents are Emily Endo, Raul De Lara, Amy Yoes, Erin Jane Nelson, Esther Elia, Christina Forrer, Jiha Moon, Tyanna Buie, Ben Gould, Gina Michaels, Chenlu Hou and Jude Griebel.

What did Jeff Koons say about AI?

Jeff Koons, who can sometimes seem to operate on a wavelength all his own, delivered again last week on the Middlebrow Podcast. The wide-ranging interview covered his early-career job at the Museum of Modern Art and his sprawling studio operation.

On younger artists making notable work, Koons was specific: "Jordan Wolfson, here in New York, is making great work." A natural response, as ARTnews deputy editor Alex Greenberger noted — both artists are represented by Gagosian, where Wolfson is currently showing an AI-generated take on a painting from Koons's "Made in Heaven" series.

On whether artificial intelligence (software that generates text and images from prompts) helps him generate ideas, Koons was blunt: "I wouldn't have confidence in AI for that at this time." The man who once cast a balloon dog in stainless steel remains an analog loyalist, at least for now.

And the best architectural project of the past two and a half decades? "I've never been to Vegas. I only want to go for the Sphere — I think it's the most exciting building of the 21st century," Koons said. The Sphere, the orb-shaped concert venue that opened in Las Vegas in 2023, now has an endorsement money can't buy.

What does the Modigliani asking price signal?

A nine-figure ask at a fair is a statement of confidence. Nu étendu (Lolotte) hasn't traded publicly in about a hundred years, which means any sale would set a fresh benchmark for a artist whose auction record territory has long been defined by reclining nudes. Paired with Phillips's $35 million sculpture estimate in November, the season now has two live tests of demand for Modigliani at the very top of the market.

The gallery signings point the same direction. Eugène's Miami Beach debut, the Casas estate exhibitions in 2027 and Tasweer's new leadership all land next year and beyond. The art trade, in short, is booking its 2027 calendar while the rest of us are still digesting 2026.