He sold the most expensive work of art in the world. Now he calls it a day.

He’s the man who sold the world’s most expensive work of art, a face familiar to the millions of people who watch livestream auctions on their computers and phones.

In November 2017, Christie’s global president Jussi Pylkkänen took the stage in New York to sell Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Salvator Mundi’.

The auction’s ninth lot, cunningly dubbed the “Last Leonardo” by a Christie’s marketing campaign, took 19 minutes to sell. After a lengthy, gasp-inducing duel between two telephone bidders, Pylkkänen ultimately brought down the “Salvator Mundi” for $450.3 million with fees, a record for any work of art, whether at auction or privately.

The price wiped out the previous high: $179.4 million for Picassos “Les Femmes d’Alger (version ‘O’)” at Christie’s in New York in May 2015. Pylkkänen was also on stage for that sale.

But now, at the age of 60 and after working at Christie’s in London for 38 years, Pylkkänen is leaving the auction house to become an independent art consultant. His last appearance on stage will be on December 7, when he will chair Christie’s evening sale of old masters in London.

Pylkkänen is the Finnish-born son of a copper merchant from Helsinki who moved to England in the 1960s. An education at a private school and the University of Oxford gave him the glowing confidence needed to become an auctioneer at the highest level.

He joined Christie’s printing company in the mid-1980s, when the auction house was still a British listed company. Since 1998 it has been owned by the Artemis group, founded by French billionaire, art collector and luxury magnate François Pinault. Physical branches such as Christie’s South Kensington and Christie’s Amsterdam that sold lower value art and antiques have closed. The “affordable” part of the auction house’s turnover is now dominated by online bidding on luxury goods such as handbags, jewelry and watches.

In an interview in his office on the fourth floor of Christie’s London headquarters, Pylkkänen reflected on a career in an industry that has undergone seismic cultural and technological shifts. These are edited excerpts from that conversation.

In terms of career highlights, the sale of “Salvator Mundi” certainly has to be a highlight. Did you know in advance that it would probably fetch such an extraordinary prize?

I thought it would make $240 million. I was confident that a work belonging to three kings of England – and that is how I opened the bidding – would generate an incredible amount of interest. My problem was $200 million with people holding up cameras on their phones. Because that looks like an offer.

I had to take a break for two reasons. Firstly, to give the three bidders still in the game a chance to re-evaluate, as we had broken the record for any work of art. But the crowd also had to be managed. I had to politely ask them to put their phones down so I could be sure that if there were any bidders in the room, I could identify them.

My expectation was that this would be a record that would not be broken for many, many years. It will be interesting to see when it will break. Due to the nature of these things, there is a good chance it will be offered at auction. And it will be for a Van Gogh, or for a Jackson Pollock. It could be for a great old master photo.

Is the fact that the buyer was Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who, according to US security servicesapproving the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi has ever given you – or Christie’s – pause for thought?

I don’t comment on the buyers. I’m sorry.

Let’s go back to the beginning. What was it like starting at Christie’s in the mid-1980s?

It was a very English company, run by a very astute but very patriarchal group of directors. It was not an “international” company. We didn’t open in America until 1976. In 1987 we sold Van Gogh’s ‘Sunflowers’. Everyone had a £500 bonus, and that was very meaningful.

How crucial was the change for Christie’s – and for the art world – the Artemis Group’s acquisition of François Pinault?

He changed our company. Pinault is an art collector and that made the difference. He understood that about Christie. He has always been very ambitious to expand our footprint. The biggest change happened when we opened in the Middle East in 2005, and then in Asia in 2012. I was president of Christie’s Europe when we opened those businesses, and have witnessed this increase in global interest. The most important works of art that we now sell are distributed in a way that was not the case in 1987.

How important has the role of luxury goods as a sales category become at Christie’s?

Luxury is the biggest entry point for our new buyers. The majority of our collectors buy in four or five different areas. They may buy luxury, but they may also look at photos from the 21st century.

To what extent have the wealthy who buy luxury items replaced the middle class who collect cheaper art and antiques?

Luxury is just another entry point. Everyone buys jewelry, everyone buys watches, people are interested in collectible sneakers. It’s a lower price of entry for people who want to buy valuable items. That is now influencing the way people buy great works of art. They can do the same with a Picasso, or a Cézanne, or a de Kooning.

The sales location is less important than it used to be, even five years ago. The buyers like to buy wherever the item comes from. They send their agents, or they look online, or we give them a condition report, or they travel in person. Where the objects are located does not matter.

In your earlier years on stage, it’s fair to say that not everyone in the art trade was impressed with your unhurried auction style. How have your techniques as an auctioneer evolved?

In my early days I just served the seller, made sure the maximum prices were achieved and was afraid of making mistakes. It takes five to seven years for an auctioneer to feel comfortable. My style is much faster now. You have to be able to judge the pace and do it well. Balance is important. If you are having trouble or something is unsold, you should focus on the next lot. Preparation is important. Panache is also important. They’re all P’s.

Your sales are viewed by millions online. They have become a form of popular entertainment. But to what extent does the voyeuristic spectacle of the ultra-rich spending millions at auction give the impression that collecting art is something that only the very rich do?

It is a reality at the top end of the market. You have to be very rich to be able to buy these works. The big evening sales are very special events. Not everyone can play for Barcelona, ​​but you can be there and watch. Many people come to see the view. There is no entrance fee for our events; 80,000 people came to the Rockefeller sale in New York.

What do you think of the transition from public-oriented auctioneer to private art advisor? Why are you doing it now?

We live in a globalized world where the number of buyers purchasing items worth over $1 million has increased very, very rapidly over the past decade. There is an incredible interest among the wealthy in acquiring great works of art and art advice has become a very important part of the art market. That’s why I’m participating.

When I first came to Christie’s my father said to me, ‘In two years I’ll give you £10,000. After seeing the full panorama of the art world through the lens of Christie’s, you will be in a position to start your own business.” I never left. But I’m going to leave now and do exactly what he planned.

Aren’t you going to miss the spotlight?

I enjoyed being an auctioneer. I look back fondly on my years at Christie’s following these auctions. I’ve had some great moments. Now I look forward to publicly purchasing major works of art for major collectors or institutions. I will still be in the stadium.