# Rafael Coronel artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/rafael-coronel/
Profile generated: 2026-05-02T10:10:00.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1932-10-24
- Death date: 2019-05-07
- Nationality: Mexican
- Common media: painting (oil on canvas and paper), sculpture, graphic arts / printmaking, mural

## About Rafael Coronel

Rafael Coronel Arroyo (1932–2019) was a Mexican painter, sculptor, and graphic artist born in Zacatecas, Mexico. He trained at the Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado "La Esmeralda" in Mexico City and became a prominent figure in twentieth-century Mexican art. In 1964 he produced murals for the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, and his work reached international audiences through exhibitions across Brazil, the United States, Belgium, Italy, China, and Chile. He was the brother of painter Pedro Coronel and the son-in-law of muralist Diego Rivera through his marriage to Ruth Rivera. Among his recognitions are the Tokyo Biennial prize, the Zacatecas 450 Award, and the Ibero-American Award for Merit in the Arts. In 1990 he donated his personal collection of Mexican art to create the Museo Rafael Coronel in Zacatecas. His work is held in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

## Common works and media

Coronel worked across oil painting on canvas and paper, sculpture, printmaking, and mural-scale compositions. His paintings frequently feature expressive figures and faces rendered in earth-toned palettes. Collectors may also encounter drawings, mixed-media works, and graphic editions. His output spans the mid-twentieth century through the early 2000s.

## Market and appraisal context

Rafael Coronel's auction market is well-established, with 527 recorded lots spanning nearly three decades (1998–2026) and 369 carrying realized prices. His work trades regularly through a mix of major international houses (Christie's, Sotheby's, Bonhams) and respected regional specialists (Morton Subastas, Millea Bros, DuMouchelles, Abell Auction). The price distribution is wide: prints and works on paper cluster below $1,000, mid-scale paintings in acrylic or oil typically realize $2,500–$15,000, and large-format oil-on-canvas compositions from recognized periods reach $20,000–$45,000, with the recorded maximum at $660,000. Recent activity has increased — 16 lots in the trailing 12 months versus 9 in the prior period — indicating sustained collector interest. Coronel's connection to the Diego Rivera circle, his institutional holdings at MoMA, and the namesake Museo Rafael Coronel in Zacatecas lend lasting market credibility.

## Auction-house-backed market evidence

Rafael Coronel's auction market is well-established, with 527 recorded lots spanning nearly three decades (1998–2026) and 369 carrying realized prices. His work trades regularly through a mix of major international houses (Christie's, Sotheby's, Bonhams) and respected regional specialists (Morton Subastas, Millea Bros, DuMouchelles, Abell Auction). The price distribution is wide: prints and works on paper cluster below $1,000, mid-scale paintings in acrylic or oil typically realize $2,500–$15,000, and large-format oil-on-canvas compositions from recognized periods reach $20,000–$45,000, with the recorded maximum at $660,000. Recent activity has increased — 16 lots in the trailing 12 months versus 9 in the prior period — indicating sustained collector interest. Coronel's connection to the Diego Rivera circle, his institutional holdings at MoMA, and the namesake Museo Rafael Coronel in Zacatecas lend lasting market credibility.

### Appraisal notes

An Appraisily appraisal for a Rafael Coronel work would begin with clear photos showing the full work, signature area, any inscriptions, and frame or mounting details. Dimensions and medium (oil on canvas, acrylic on panel, ink or pencil on paper, print edition) must be confirmed, as these are the primary value drivers: the auction data shows a 100× spread between prints and large oils. The appraiser would then pull comparable lots from the 369 priced records, filtered by medium, scale, period, and subject. Recent Bonhams, Christie's, and regional-house results provide a solid comparable pool for paintings. For prints and works on paper, RoGallery and similar sources offer volume but fewer realized prices. Provenance documentation — gallery labels, exhibition history, prior sale records — strengthens the appraisal significantly, especially for works attributed to the 1960s prize-winning period. Edition details for prints (number, total edition size, publisher) should be recorded. Condition issues (craquelure, lining, foxing on paper, fading) materially affect value at every price tier.

### Valuation factors

- Medium — large oil-on-canvas paintings command significantly more than works on paper, prints, or offset lithographs from the Misrachi portfolio series
- Scale — dimensions matter: a 61 × 98.5 in canvas (Tiempo, $45,000) trades well above small-format ink or pencil drawings ($280–$380)
- Period and date — works from the 1960s prize-winning and internationally exhibited era (e.g., Tres Mujeres, circa 1966, $22,000; Paseo, 1965, $14,000) tend to attract stronger bidding
- Subject matter — figurative compositions with Coronel's signature expressive faces and haunting figures carry premium interest over simpler studies
- Provenance and exhibition history — documented gallery or museum provenance, and references to the Misrachi gallery, support attribution and value
- Condition and signature — as with most mid-century Mexican works, condition reports and a legible, period-appropriate signature are essential for appraisal accuracy
- Institutional profile — MoMA holdings and the Museo Rafael Coronel collection reinforce long-term collectibility and market confidence

### Collector notes

- Coronel's market has genuine breadth: 527 lots across dozens of sales over 28 years, with reliable pricing from both blue-chip and regional auction houses. For buyers, this means comparable-sale data is rich enough to anchor a defensible appraisal. Large oils from the 1960s–1970s sit in the $14,000–$45,000 range at major houses; smaller paintings and acrylics on panel typically realize $2,500–$7,500. Works on paper and prints trade well below $1,000 and are accessible entry points. Activity is rising (16 recent lots vs. 9 the prior year), which may signal growing demand or simply broader availability. Misrachi portfolio offset lithographs appear frequently but often without published realized prices, suggesting they may pass or sell at modest levels. One recent Canadian-auction result (CAD 28,000) indicates cross-border interest. Collectors should verify attribution carefully — lot descriptions occasionally show minor signature discrepancies — and insist on condition reports, especially for older canvases.

### Market caveats

- Price distribution is wide ($20–$660,000); an appraisal must be specific to the work's medium, size, and period rather than relying on artist-level averages.
- One recent lot was denominated in CAD (A. H. Wilkens, CAD 28,000); currency should be confirmed before using as a USD comparable.
- Several recent RoGallery lots (Misrachi portfolio offset lithographs) show no published realized price, suggesting they may have passed or been sold post-auction at undisclosed terms.
- A minor signature discrepancy appears in one lot ('RAFAEL CORNONEL' with a typo in the cataloguing of Boy in Robe) — cataloguers and appraisers should verify signatures against authenticated examples.
- The source pack contains auction records aggregated by Appraisily from public auction feeds; individual lot details should be verified against the original auction-house catalogues.
- Wikidata lists Coronel's birth year as 1931 while LoC and RKD record 1932-10-24; lot descriptions split between both years, which does not affect value but should be noted in attribution.

### Market evidence sources

- Appraisily auction record index: https://appraisily.com/api/scraper-search/artists/rafael-coronel/seo-profile?recentLimit=24&relatedLimit=0
- Invaluable (Abell Auction): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-1932-2019-untitled-two-men-564-c-0947dce6ed
- Invaluable (Abell Auction): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-1932-2019-el-borracho-the-drunkard-518-c-b434331f4d
- Invaluable (Abell Auction): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-1932-2019-portfolio-of-prints-517-c-f8c1c58332
- Invaluable (A. H. Wilkens Auctions & Appraisals): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-mexican-1931-2019-2142-c-63b731b7f0
- Invaluable (RoGallery): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-portrait-v-from-galeria-de-arte-misrachi-portfolio-offset-lithograph-702-c-add4f7b82b
- Invaluable (RoGallery): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-portrait-ii-from-galeria-de-arte-misrachi-portfolio-offset-lithograph-701-c-bee4f1696f
- Invaluable (Millea Bros Ltd): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-oil-on-canvas-1208-c-5014926830
- Invaluable (RoGallery): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-portrait-xii-from-galeria-de-arte-misrachi-portfolio-offset-lithograph-1176-c-8f647a7b00
- Invaluable (RoGallery): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-portrait-xiv-from-galeria-de-arte-misrachi-portfolio-offset-lithograph-1254-c-42548f1b94
- Invaluable (DOYLE Auctioneers & Appraisers): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-99-c-5d34cb09ff
- Invaluable (Millea Bros Ltd): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-oil-on-canvas-1128-c-d624281afa
- Invaluable (Millea Bros Ltd): https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-rafael-coronel-oil-on-canvas-portrait-1126-c-3fc405eb4a

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine artist identity research with auction records, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. This page draws on authority files from the Library of Congress, the RKD, Wikidata, and the Museum of Modern Art.

## Sources

- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n89608754
- RKD: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/104135
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/6780
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q250397
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rafael_Coronel
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/10942925/
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500132403