The very definition of passionate collectors, Steven & Ann Ames studiously and thoughtfully pursued Contemporary Art. After years at Oppenheimer & Co and the New York Stock Exchange, Steven Ames returned to Columbia University to pursue a Master’s Degree in Art History. Particularly enamored with the work of Gerhard Richter, the Ames’s accumulated paintings from every decade of the artist’s career. Tonight, 6 works by the artist were sold, including 2 abstrakt bilds, totaling $75.6 million. A B, Still, painted at the height of Richter’s artistic achievement utilizing the squeegee, was the top lot. Added to the Ames Collection over twenty-five years ago at Sotheby’s in New York for $264,000, tonight it surpassed its pre-sale estimate of $20/30 million. Chased by three telephone bidders for over seven minutes, the oil on canvas achieved $33,987,500.

Other highlights included Mark Grotjahn’s Untitled (French Grey Fan 10-90% Butterfly with Warm Grey 90% Between), which opened the sale and attracted bidding from four collectors before selling for $1,872,500, double the high estimate and an auction record for a work on paper by the artist. The following lot, Jim Hodges’s Untitled was chased by five bidders on the telephones and in the room, going on to fetch $1,332,500.