Julian Schnabel Auction Prices and Value Guide
Julian Schnabel auction prices are tracked in Appraisily's artist market index, with source-directory coverage of 771 records. Use this page to review sold-lot activity, market context, and valuation factors before requesting a formal appraisal.
Julian Schnabel auction prices: quick answer
Julian Schnabel auction prices depend on medium, size, date, condition, provenance, edition details, attribution confidence, and recent comparable auction sales.
- Artist
- Julian Schnabel
- Source records
- 771
- Market update
- 2026-02-16
Artist context
About Julian Schnabel
Julian Schnabel (born October 26, 1951, Brooklyn, New York) is an American painter, sculptor, and filmmaker who rose to international prominence in the early 1980s as a leading figure of the Neo-expressionist movement. He is best known for his plate paintings—large-scale works in which broken ceramic plates are adhered to wooden supports and combined with bold, gestural brushwork. Over a career spanning more than four decades, Schnabel has worked across an unusually broad range of supports and materials, including velvet, tarpaulin, wax, resin, and spray paint, as well as producing sculpture, works on paper, and photographs. Beyond the visual arts, Schnabel has established himself as a significant independent filmmaker, directing Before Night Falls (2000) and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007), for which he received the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Director and a Golden Globe. His work is held by major institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and Tate in London.
Neo-expressionismContemporary artOil and ceramic plates on canvasOil on velvetWax paintingResinAbstract and figurative compositions
Common works and media
Schnabel's output spans multiple distinct series. Plate paintings—large-scale compositions on wooden supports with embedded broken ceramic—remain his signature work. Velvet paintings feature oil on velvet fabric, often with bold color fields. Wax paintings, tarp paintings, resin paintings, spray paintings, and canvas paintings round out the principal painting categories. He has also produced sculptures, works on paper, watercolors, drawings, and photographs. His official catalogue organizes these into named series including Wax Paintings, Wood Paintings, Plate Paintings, Velvet Paintings, Paintings on Printed Materials, Resin Paintings, Tarp Paintings, Spray Paintings, Intervention Paintings, Canvas Paintings, and Works on Paper.
Market and appraisal context
Julian Schnabel's auction market is deep and well-established, with 523 cataloged lots spanning from June 1999 to April 2026, of which 324 carry realized prices. The price distribution is broad: the median sits at $23,750, the 75th percentile at $96,000, and the ceiling reaches $1,750,000, reflecting the gap between entry-level prints and works on paper at one end and major plate paintings and large-scale sculptures at the other. Top-tier works consistently appear at Christie's, Sotheby's, Phillips, and Bonhams in Post-War and Contemporary Art sales. Recent highlights include a plate painting Victory After S-chanf I selling for $330,200 at Christie's (September 2025), the patinated bronze sculpture Golem at $279,400 at Christie's (November 2025), and an executed 1985 plate painting Untitled reaching $160,000 at Bonhams (November 2025). At the same time, prints and multiples—serigraphs, screenprints, and carbon prints—regularly trade between $800 and $2,000 at regional houses. The most historically significant and valuable category remains early plate paintings from the late 1970s and 1980s, followed by large-scale sculptures. Schnabel's furniture and design commissions for the Gramercy Park Hotel have also created a niche auction category, with tables selling between $48,000 and $55,000. Liquidity is strong but has softened slightly: 22 lots appeared in the most recent 12-month window compared to 35 in the prior period, which may reflect cyclical consignment patterns or a modest cooling in demand.
Auction categories and appraisal factors
Common auction categories
- Post-War and Contemporary Art
- Oil and ceramic plates on canvas
- Oil on velvet
- Works on paper
- Sculpture (bronze and mixed media)
Value drivers
- Medium and series: plate paintings are the most recognizable and historically significant series; velvet, wax, tarp, and resin paintings each carry distinct market profiles
- Scale: Schnabel works across a wide range of sizes, with large-scale paintings typically commanding higher prices at auction
- Provenance and exhibition history: works with documented gallery or museum exhibition records are more sought after
- Date of execution: early plate paintings from the late 1970s–1980s carry historical importance within the Neo-expressionist movement
- Condition: ceramic plate fragments are inherently fragile and condition of the substrate and plates materially affects value
- Series identification: plate paintings are the most historically significant and highest-valued series; velvet, wax, tarp, and resin paintings each carry distinct market profiles
Appraisal caveats
- Market performance can vary significantly between painting series (plate vs. velvet vs. wax vs. resin); each series should be evaluated on its own comparable sales.
- Works on paper and photographs generally occupy a different price tier than large-scale paintings.
- Schnabel's dual career as a filmmaker adds cultural prominence but does not directly translate to uniform pricing across all visual art categories.
- Appraisily auction signals are derived from public auction feeds and may not capture every private sale or gallery transaction; actual transaction volume is likely higher than cataloged lot counts
Evidence
Sources for artist context
This source-grounded artist context passed Appraisily's promotion threshold: high confidence, strong sources.
- RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History library authority
- Library of Congress library authority
- Wikidata library authority
- Wikipedia wikipedia
- The Museum of Modern Art museum or university
- Tate museum or university
Data basis
This page is built from Appraisily's public auction market index. Private transactions, incomplete sale feeds, and attribution changes may not be fully represented.
Artist value FAQ
How much is Julian Schnabel worth?
Comparable public auction sales are the best starting point, but final value depends on the specific artwork, condition, size, medium, provenance, and attribution confidence.
Can Appraisily value my Julian Schnabel artwork?
Yes. Appraisily can review photos, dimensions, signatures, condition, provenance, and comparable market data to prepare a current valuation.