London Old Masters Sales Reveal a Market Split Between Trophy Works and Everything Else

Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in On Balance, the ARTnews newsletter about the art market and beyond. Sign up here to receive it every Wednesday.In London on Wednesday, Sotheby’s Old Master & 19th Century Paintings and Sculpture sale brought in £37.8 million ($50.2 million), a solid result that masked a sharply divided market. Record prices, a flurry of bidding for museum-quality works, and a £13.6 million sculpture suggest