This article is taken from the June 2026 issue of The Critic. To get the full magazine why not subscribe? Find our subscription offers here.
The new Christie’s auctioneers’ rostrum, designed by Sir Jony Ive and Marc Newson’s collective, LoveFrom, is a statement of intent from the international art business where in-person live auctioneering is central not just to operations but brand identity.
Whilst online auctions are becoming increasingly widespread, high-value sales still seem to require a human agent overseeing the auction process.
Consider the rostrum for a moment: the previous example was made in mahogany, copying what may have been James Christie’s 18th century rostrum, said to have been designed by Thomas Chippendale. The new rostrum’s sleek, aerodynamic lines give a sense of lightness, suggesting that it might take off and fly through the air.
In fact, as it is made from thick oak planks, it is sturdy and very heavy. The essential 18th century design of the original is detectable in the new version. This being the 21st century, there are no frivolities: all obvious decorations are eschewed for the sake of projecting a serious face.
Adrien Meyer of Christie’s, one of the most assured and brilliant auctioneers anywhere in the world today, says: “I love it. I find it elegant, polished, stylish and could imagine it well going on to be used by generations to come … it ‘feels’ great, which proves its brilliance as a design.”
I trained as an auctioneer at Christie’s, took sales at Christie’s in South Kensington saleroom and at King Street, so I was intrigued by this renewal: if the rostrum were a car, it might be rather like ditching the Bentley and replacing it with a McLaren.
In the art world, auctions are necessary, deeply traditional and usually like watching paint dry. It wasn’t always like this: when Getty and Norton Simon were buying in the post-war era, there was a drama which played out, theatrically, in the saleroom for everyone to see.
I remember Charlie Hindlip, chairman of Christie’s, all of a sudden switching into perfect French mid-auction, apparently for the benefit of the telephone bidder.
Before he died, Charlie told me that the great collector Stavros Niarchos insisted on communicating his bids via telephone to him, which was complicated by the fact that he was also the auctioneer. As this was pre-mobile telephone days, a handset was left on the counter through which Charlie spoke whilst he auctioned the lot on which Niarchos was bidding.
Is auctioneering another human skill destined for the automation chopping block? Already, timed online auctions — successfully mastered by eBay years ago — have found their way into the world of the gavel-wielding auctioneer. But how will the sharp-suited, couture-clad, smooth-syllabled auctioneers maintain their pre-eminence?
Since the arrival of international jet travel, collectors have been prepared to cross continents to attend sales.
However, technology has a double edge. Whilst some of the international jet set were delighted to show their faces to bid on a Braque at Sotheby’s, more and more opted for secrecy, bidding via telephone.
The technological innovation of the internet has added another layer of secrecy: no need to rely on your phone signal and a human to relay your bid — only the speed of your internet connection will hold back an online bid.
Such innovations have also made the job of the auctioneer harder: how to keep the watching punters interested? Make no mistake, the majority of those sitting in the room are watching. Yes, there are a handful who make the effort to come in person to bid and buy. The so-called “action” takes place behind the telephone. The auctioneer is relegated to a mediator between his or her colleagues on the telephones, occasionally sharing a joke as if no one else were watching.
Where the auctioneer used to cajole and charm, pause and speed up, today the auction house staffer has to play that role. Adrien Meyer says that he views his colleagues on the telephone “as my most important clients, and I want them to feel that way during an auction as they represent the end buyer on the phone. They often feel the client’s excitement and convey it to the room which becomes entertaining”.
If auctions are actually theatrical and exciting, then there is a chance they will remain conducted by people. If not, automation beckons.
