From Monet to Basquiat: Here Are the Most Profitable Artists of 2025 on the Global Art Market
The art market is undergoing a spectacular transformation. The latest Artnet Intelligence Report 2025 reveals which artists are setting new standards of value and emotion today. Here is a ranking of the most profitable artists - from old masters to modern rebels.
In a world where emotional investments are becoming as important as financial ones, art is playing an increasingly strategic role . The published Artnet Intelligence Report: The Year Ahead 2025 reveals new market trends . After a difficult 2024, when auction sales fell by 27.3 percent and prices of the most expensive works dropped significantly, a new generation of collectors is beginning to dictate the terms of the game.
While the market is undergoing a transformation, some works still fetch fortunes. René Magritte's surrealist " L'empire des lumières " sold for $121 million, Jean-Michel Basquiat's expressive " Untitled (ELMAR) " for $46.5 million, and Claude Monet's impressionistic " Nymphéas " for $65.5 million. Who else made it to the top of the highest-grossing artists?
Top grossing artists - early artDespite changing trends, old art still fascinates. Among the biggest hits of 2024 was Jean-Siméon Chardin's masterpiece "Le Melon entamé" , which reached an impressive price of almost 29 million dollars. Titian , Quentin Massys the Elder , and Sandro Botticelli confirmed that investing in the eternal beauty of the Renaissance and Baroque remains one of the most stable choices on the market.
.jpg)
Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, Le Melon entamé, 1760, private collection / Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jean_Sim%C3%A9on_Chardin_-_Le_Melon_entam%C3%A9_(1760).jpgIn the category of impressionists and modern art, the real king was René Magritte . His mystical " L'empire des lumières " sold for a staggering $121 million, setting new standards for the surrealists. Claude Monet , with the immortal "Nymphéas", and Gustav Klimt with the portrait of Fräulein Lieser , reminded the world that the classics of French and Viennese modernism still stirred emotions and wallets.
Post-War Art: Ruscha and Warhol at the TopEd Ruscha – the American master of conceptualism – sold his " Standard Station, TenCent Western Being Torn in Half " for $68 million, proving that postwar America still evokes thrills.
Ed Ruscha, Standard station tencent western being torn in half, 1964 / Christie'sAndy Warhol , eternally relevant with his iconic Flowers , and David Hockney with his pulsating scenes of Californian life, remain unquestionable pillars of contemporary art history.
The King of Modern Art: BasquiatThe undisputed leader among contemporary artists remains Jean-Michel Basquiat . His works from 1982, including " Untitled (ELMAR) " sold for $46 million, are today among the most desirable works in the world.
JeanMichel Basquiat, Untitled (ELMAR), 1982 / PhilipsBasquiat , an artist who combined street rebellion with philosophical reflection, has become a symbol of authenticity and expressive power in an era where storytelling and identity are of the utmost value.
Top grossing artists - works sold in 2024 Old art:- JeanSiméon Chardin – Le Melon entamé – $28,981,893
- Titian – Rest on the Flight into Egypt – $22,258,841
- Quentin Massys the Elder – Madonna and Child – $13,512,486
- Sandro Botticelli – Virgin and Child Enthroned – $12,660,480
- Frans Hals – Portrait of a Gentleman of the de Wolff Family – $7,244,264
- René Magritte – L'empire des lumières – $121,160,000
- Claude Monet – Nymphéas – $65,500,000
- René Magritte – The Intimacy of Life – $43,065,507
- Gustav Klimt – Portrait of Fräulein Lieser – $41,141,270
- Claude Monet – Meules à Giverny – $34,804,500
- Ed Ruscha – Standard Station, TenCent Western Being Torn in Half – $68,260,000
- Andy Warhol – Flowers – $35,485,000
- David Hockney – A Lawn Being Sprinkled – $28,585,000
- Leonora Carrington – Les Distractions de Dagobert – $28,485,000
- David Hockney – California – $23,938,076
- Jean-Michel Basquiat – Untitled (ELMAR) – $46,479,000
- JeanMichel Basquiat – The Italian Version of Popeye has No Pork in his Diet – $32,035,000
- Jean-Michel Basquiat – Untitled – $22,950,000
- JeanMichel Basquiat – Portrait of the Artist as a Young Derelict – $20,300,167
- Felix GonzalezTorres – Untitled (America 3) – $13,635,000
