Christie's has changed a great deal over its 250 year history. Based on the images at the top of the page, and some additional research, it seems that Christie's has helped refine the art of the auction.
The auctioneer, who whose role used to be more like that of a mediocre salesman amidst a slightly distracted audience, is now a trained conductor with the room at his attention. Christie's chief auctioneer, Christopher Burge, exemplifies the profession's evolved role. He has a reputation for being “genuinely charming and having tight control over the room” (Thornton, 5). As Burge explains his selling strategies, one may call to mind the world of sports or gambling before art. Burge discloses that he keeps a book recording the seated positions of the bidders and their bidding styles, whether they are aggressive or looking for a deal (Thornton, 4). He also credits his ability to read bidders body language after years of experience (Thornton, 21). As a result, Burge and other experienced auctioneers, have a good sense of how things will turn out before the auction begins.
The buyers have changed as well. The auction house used to draw informal crowds engaging in some casual window shopping and light socialization. Today's buyer is much more focused. Some see the event as a serious business transaction by which to diversify their investment portfolios. Others are serious collectors constantly looking to acquire new works to keep them at the top of their social circles. Many attend for a combination of both reasons.
Other factors have changed since Christie's opened. The works offered at auction tend to be quite recent. As Thornton notes in her first chapter, primary concern is not for the meaning of the artwork but its unique selling points, which tend to fetishize the earliest traces of the artist's brand or signature style.” (Thornton, 7).
The bidding room itself is has changed from the greyish-green ideal of 18th century gallery interiors to the stark minimal white that is the standard of today (Klonk, 28). Additionally, the condensed arrangement of paintings characteristic of 18th century displays has given way to a focused and separate display of each work (Klonk, 30).
A recent auction at Sothebys was marked by some the typical attributes of the contemporary auction as noted in the Thornton article. Klimt's Litzlberg on the Attersee made $40.4 million, well above the estimated $25 million it was expected to generate [1].
Link to image here: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/03/arts/design/sothebys-art-auction-totals-nearly-200-million.html
Though Sothebys auctioneers likely use the same statistical methods that Burge describes, this is proof that the market is often unpredictable when those with unlimited financial means are involved. The article also points out that sale had more modernist material than recent sales. L'Aubade by Picasso sold for $23 million.
Link to image here: http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/news/artmarketwatch/sothebys-impressionist-and-modern-sale-11-3-11_detail.asp?picnum=5
This resonates with Thornton's observation that serious collectors tend to buy newer works because they want to stay ahead of the curve (Thornton, 13). This may also help explain why, aside from the Klimt painting, the other top grossing sales were from the modernist paintings. Though these modernist paintings aren't exactly new, perhaps this is a compromise between the uncertainty of the primary art market and the desire to have more recent work.
Bibliography:
[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/03/arts/design/sothebys-art-auction-totals-nearly-200-million.html
[3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boaFiyICN0w&feature=related
Klonk, Charlotte. Spaces of Experience.
Thornton, Sarah. Seven Days in the Art World.