It is definitely an exciting time to be watching the art market -- particularly the auction sector! Today and tomorrow in New York, Sothebys and Christies are holding auctions that have the potential for record breaking sales. Some of the big names to go on the block; Paul Cezanne, Gustave Klimt, Egon Schiele and Picasso.

My personal pick for the highest seller? Pablo Picasso's Portrait of Angel Fernandez de Soto from his blue period, seen on the left (estimates usd 40-60 million). The historical and $$$ significance of Picasso's blue period aside, the work is just so seductive and has such a great story. Fernandez de Soto was an artist bad-boy who shared a studio with Picasso for just a short time. He never made it into the art history survey books. Perhaps he was better at partying and womanizing than painting?  His rowdy, late night antics were too much of a distraction to Picasso (whom I hardly consider studious during this time) and soon ended their shared living arrangements.

This all has a great tie-in to the Barcelona Exhibition at the Cleveland Museum of Art. In the Barcelona show you will see a great blue period painting by Picasso - LA VIE - part of the CMA's permanent collection. It depicts another friend of Picasso's from this period, Carlos Casagmas, who tradgically committed suicide.  Surrounding this painting  gritty bohemian stories of love triangles and venereal disease abound.