London ( CNN ) -- It 's the time of year when hammers are poised at the world 's major auction houses and the strength of the art market for the coming year is tested . Following a trend set in the last few years , Impressionist and Modern works of art are likely to be the big sellers . `` Impressionist and Modern art has been very strong for a number of years , but it seems to be getting stronger and stronger , '' said Deborah Allan , Head of the Impressionist & Modern Art Department at Bonhams auction house in London . `` It 's amazing really , even with the huge financial problems that have been happening worldwide , '' she said . Bonhams clocked sales for works by Pierre-Auguste Renoir , Camille Pissarro , Amedeo Modigliani and Pablo Picasso at their Impressionist and Modern Sale Tuesday . The star lots included a Modigliani portrait of a woman and a Picasso painting of Notre Dame in Paris , which sold for £1.3 million and $ 1.4 million ( £825,250 and £864,450 ) respectively , both just shy of their $ 1.6 million upper estimates . On the same day , three works of art from the Elizabeth Taylor collection fetched a combined £13.7 million ( $ 21.7m ) at Christie 's auction house , more than doubling their pre-sale low estimate of £6.2 million . An additional 35 works from the film star 's fine art collection will be offered for sale on 8 February as part of Christie 's continuing sales series devoted to Impressionist and Modern Art . Over at Sotheby 's auction house in London , auctioneers also anticipate a healthy sale Wednesday , with star lots in the form of paintings by Claude Monet and Austrian painter Gustav Klimt . Dating from 1901 , the painting by Klimt depicts the shore of a lake , bordered by birch trees , and is estimated to sell for between $ 9.5 million and $ 13 million ( £6 million and £8 million ) . It is particularly unique because it has been in the same family collection for over 100 years , said Helena Newman , Chairman of Sotheby 's Impressionist and Modern Art , Europe . See also : Leonardo : The man , the myth , the mystery . `` ( The painting ) has n't been seen in a public exhibition or appeared at auction and it 's rather exciting for the market place because that sort of thing only happens very rarely , '' she said . Interest in the Viennese symbolist painter , perhaps best-known for his 1907 painting `` Adele Bloch-Bauer I '' -- which sold in 2006 for a reported $ 135 million , at the time the highest sum ever paid for a painting -- has been steadily growing these last few years . A landscape painting by Klimt , which had been stolen by the Nazis and eventually returned to the heir of the original owner , sold at Sotheby 's in New York in November 2011 for $ 40.4 million . With 2012 marking the 150th anniversary of the artist 's birth , it is quite possible that the 1901 work `` Lakeshore with birches '' will smash its upper estimate at Sotheby 's on Wednesday . Also included in the sale is a painting of a snowy landscape by Impressionist artist Claude Monet , which like the Klimt is entering the market after a long period -- nearly 100 years -- in a private collection . It is expected to sell for between $ 7 million and $ 10 million ( £4.5 million and £6.5 million ) . `` It 's from the mid-1880s , when Monet was at Giverny , '' said Newman of Sotheby 's . `` There was an account of some snow falling and ( Monet ) immediately muffled himself up and went out and put his easel on the road in order to capture en plein air the extraordinary effect of the light , '' she explained . Despite a rocky year in the financial markets , Newman believes that the range and depth of works in the sale at Sotheby 's reflects confidence in the market . See also : Picasso , Mondrian works stolen in Athens heist . `` Sellers have recognized that there is a huge global demand for a whole range of collectors both established and relatively new who are looking to buy top quality material of Impressionist and Modern art , '' she said . Allan at Bonhams echoed this , saying that the market for Impressionist and Modern art is particularly strong because as less great works with historical provenance come on the market , they become more and more expensive . `` I think also with the true globalization of buyers , ( the market is now ) so international , and with the internet and internet bidding , it 's so easy to access our sales ( and ) it 's really changed the market , '' she said . And paintings by Impressionists escape a recently implemented EU Artist 's Resale Right Directive , which applies to European artists who have died in the past 70 years as well as living European artists -- though Newman does n't believe the charge , which caps at a maximum of 12,500 Euros ( $ 16,500 ) on a transaction , will deter buyers . `` The average lot value in our evening sale is £1.5 million ( $ 1.9 million ) so in the grand scheme of things I do n't anticipate that it will have a measurable effect , '' said Newman .
Impressionist and Modern auction sales kick off in London ; will test the strength of the global art market . Popularity for Impressionist and Modern artworks still high , in spite of problems in the global financial markets . Star lots of sales at Bonhams and Sotheby 's include paintings by Monet , Klimt , Modigliani and Picasso . Comment: