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The Morning Signal

November 12, 2026

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THE LEAD

Christie's New York to Auction Only Handwritten Draft of MLK's 'I Have A Dream' Speech on Jan. 22, 2027

via Christie's

On November 9, 2026, Christie's announced it will offer the only known handwritten final draft of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech in a single-lot sale on January 22, 2027. The seven-page manuscript, rediscovered by Xernona Clayton in a desk drawer, will be exhibited publicly before the sale. Proceeds benefit the Xernona Clayton Foundation and The King Center. The draft lacks the iconic "I Have A Dream" phrase, added spontaneously during the speech, but includes the "Free at last" conclusion.

One lot, no public estimate yet, in a January slot clear of the November sales — Christie's is pricing civil-rights material as a trophy category now.

Other

The Signal

“A 91% sell-through on $14.2 million of Asian art at Christie's says reserves, not bidding wars, are doing the work.”

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The pattern this week

Ninety-six stories, 36 of them exhibition openings; London (22) and New York (21) set the pace, with Los Angeles at 10 on the back of rafa esparza and Gormley in Dallas. The auction tally — eight sales, €124.6M — is thin for mid-November, and the marquee evening sales are conspicuously absent.

The Market

€124.6M across 8 auctions this week

This week · 96 stories · 36 exhibitions opening · busiest city: London

$14,246,250 Christie's Asian Art Sales in New York Total $14.2 Million

Ninety-one percent by lot at $14.2 million is a healthy clearing rate, but the money sits in Ming porcelain, not contemporary work — New York's Asian art buyers remain dynasty-driven.

Christie's

Millon's 17th Retrogaming Auction to Take Place November 14, 2026 in Paris Millon

Erwin Wurm Donates Monumental Sculpture 'Gate' to Düsseldorf, Unveiled at Schauspielhaus Thaddaeus Ropac · earlier this week

Featured

Hauser & Wirth Announces Worldwide Representation of rafa esparza

Hauser & Wirth has announced the worldwide representation of Los Angeles-based artist rafa esparza, in close collaboration with Commonwealth and Council. Born in 1981 in Pasadena, California, esparza…

Why it matters
Hauser & Wirth taking worldwide representation while leaving Commonwealth and Council in the credit line is the tell: blue-chip galleries now buy an artist's context, not just studio output.

via Hauser & Wirth · Appointment

Antony Gormley Discusses Nasher Retrospective as Antidote to Dallas's 'Transactional' Culture

British artist Antony Gormley described his major retrospective at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas as a deliberate dialogue with a city built for speed, positioning his work as a philosophical…

Why it matters
Gormley framing the Nasher survey against Dallas's speed is a curatorial argument, not a press line — worth watching whether the museum's sculpture program follows the thesis.

via Thaddaeus Ropac · Exhibition

The Wire

1.

Guggenheim 2026 Benefit Honors Alex Katz and Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak — Guggenheim

2.

Walker Art Center's 54th Choreographers' Evening, Curated by Ashwini Ramaswamy, Set for Nov 21 — Walker Art Center

3.

Museum Brandhorst Opens 'In My Head' with Works by Nicole Eisenman, Martine Syms — Sadie Coles HQ

4.

Sharjah Art Foundation Opens Call for Two-Year Collection Research Fellowship — Sharjah Art Foundation

Earlier this week

1.

Getty Launches Multi-Year Conservation of Peru's Church of Rondocan and Bitti Paintings — Getty

2.

Matthew Barney and Jonathan Bepler's 'River of Fundament' Screens in New York on November 14, 2026 — Sadie Coles HQ

3.

Arthur Jafa's 'Love Is The Message' to Debut at Chrysler Museum of Art in Virginia — Sadie Coles HQ

4.

Tate Partners with Counter Editions on 'Women in Print' Portfolio Featuring Eight Female Artists — Tate

The Week Ahead

Today

Walker Art Center to Present Abbas Akhavan's First U.S. Mid-Career Survey Walker Art Center

Today

Tate Britain to Present First Major Exhibition on Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant's Creative Partnership Tate

Today

White Cube Announces Doris Salcedo Talk with Madeleine Grynsztejn at New York Exhibition Opening White Cube

Today

Phillips and The Hour Glass Present George Daniels Centenary Exhibition with 22 Watches at IAMWATCH 2026 Phillips

Today

Stedelijk Museum's Bathtub Lecture to Feature Limbo Museum Founder Dominique Petit-Frère Stedelijk Museum

Today

Aguttes to Sell Silver-Gilt Tea Service of Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaïevna, Estimated €40,000–€80,000 Aguttes

Full calendar →

On the Rise

Trending Institutions ▲ Tate (7) · ▲ Almine Rech (6) · ▲ Getty (6) · ▲ Guggenheim (6) · → Southbank Centre (6) · ▼ Galerie Max Hetzler (5) · ▲ Sadie Coles HQ (5)

Alvaro Barrington — Alvaro Barrington is a contemporary painter known for his multimedia approach, which frequently incorporates materials such as yarn, wood, and textiles into his canvases. Profile →

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