Louis Icart Auction Prices and Value Guide
Louis Icart auction prices are tracked in Appraisily's artist market index, with source-directory coverage of 21,168 records. Use this page to review sold-lot activity, market context, and valuation factors before requesting a formal appraisal.
Louis Icart auction prices: quick answer
Louis Icart auction prices depend on medium, size, date, condition, provenance, edition details, attribution confidence, and recent comparable auction sales.
- Artist
- Louis Icart
- Source records
- 21,168
- Market update
- 2026-02-06
Artist context
About Louis Icart
Louis Justin Laurent Icart (1888–1950) was a French painter, etcher, illustrator, and graphic artist best known for his elegant depictions of women rendered in the Art Deco style. Born in Toulouse, he trained as a draftsman and printmaker, developing a distinctive combination of etching, aquatint, and drypoint that defined his most recognizable work. Active in Paris throughout the early twentieth century, Icart produced a prolific body of fashion illustrations, figural etchings, and decorative prints that captured the glamour and modernity of interwar French culture. He also worked in oil, watercolor, and pastel. Icart is listed in major reference works including Bénézit, Vollmer, and the Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon. His prints remain among the most frequently traded works in the twentieth-century decorative print market.
Art Decoetching with aquatintdrypointoil paintingwatercolorelegant women and fashionerotic and feminine figural subjects
Common works and media
The most frequently encountered Icart works at auction are etchings with aquatint and drypoint on paper, often depicting elegantly posed women in fashionable or romantic settings. Many were issued as numbered editions with pencil signatures. Icart also produced oil paintings, watercolors, pastels, and fashion illustrations. Subjects range from seated and reclining female figures to decorative still lifes and animal compositions. Editioned prints form the bulk of the auction market for this artist.
Market and appraisal context
Louis Icart is one of the most liquid 20th-century French print artists at auction. The Appraisily auction record index tracks 2,617 lots dating from October 2004 through April 2026, with 1,784 carrying a realized price. The price distribution is heavily right-skewed: the 25th percentile is $190, the median is $350, and the 75th percentile is $700, while the recorded maximum reaches $1,100,000. This dispersion reflects the broad range of media, editions, conditions, and subject importance within the Icart oeuvre. Auction volume remains substantial, with 347 priced lots in the trailing 12 months against 450 in the prior period—a modest year-over-year decline that still signals strong, ongoing market liquidity. Works cross the block primarily at mid-tier and regional auction houses including Heritage Auctions, DuMouchelles, Fontaine's Auction Gallery, John Moran Auctioneers, Il Ponte Auction House (Milan), Abell Auction, and Hill Auction Gallery, as well as specialist and online-only platforms such as The Rug Life Auctions, Chamberlain Auction Gallery, Bruce Teleky Inc., and Treasureseeker Auctions LLC. The majority of lots are color etchings with aquatint and drypoint depicting elegant female figures; hand-signed lifetime impressions in good condition with documented edition numbers command a premium over unsigned or posthumous restrikes.
Auction categories and appraisal factors
Common auction categories
- color etching with aquatint and drypoint
- hand-colored etching
- intaglio print
- lithograph
- oil painting
Value drivers
- Medium and authenticity are the first value split: lifetime etchings with aquatint and drypoint should be separated from lithographs, restrikes, reproductions, and works after Icart.
- Signature and edition details matter, including pencil signature versus plate signature, edition number, publisher or printer marks, blind stamps, and any certificate or gallery documentation.
- Condition is decisive for prints: foxing, toning, fading, mat burn, tears, trimming, hinge marks, paper waviness, and frame history can materially reduce value.
- Subject and title affect comparability; recurring Art Deco female subjects such as Intimacy, Smoke, Black Fan, Sleeping Beauty, Coursing II, and similar glamour scenes have deep comparable sets.
- Original oils, watercolors, and pastels should be appraised with a narrower comparable pool because they appear less frequently than editioned prints.
- Sale venue and volume matter: regional and online sales provide liquidity signals, while stronger signed examples at established houses should anchor higher estimates.
Appraisal caveats
- Louis Icart is among the most frequently encountered artists at auction for 20th-century French prints, with over 21,000 recorded lots in the Appraisily database. Volume and repeat appearances mean individual lot values vary widely.
- Later restrikes, reproductions, and prints after Icart circulate widely; attribution and authenticity verification are essential.
- Market context here is based on general art-historical and auction-house knowledge; specific price ranges are not provided because realized prices depend on condition, provenance, edition, and sale venue.
- The $1,100,000 maximum recorded price is an extreme outlier; the vast majority of Icart lots trade well below $1,000. Do not use the maximum as a reference point for typical works.
Evidence
Sources for artist context
This source-grounded artist context passed Appraisily's promotion threshold: high confidence, strong sources.
- Wikidata library authority
- VIAF / OCLC library authority
- Library of Congress library authority
- RKD library authority
- Wikipedia wikipedia
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 Louis Icart 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 Louis Icart artwork?
Yes. Appraisily can review photos, dimensions, signatures, condition, provenance, and comparable market data to prepare a current valuation.