Manet, Chagall artworks up for auction in New York tonight

A celebrated portrait of a Parisian actress by Edouard Manet was slated for the auction block at Christie's during the second day of a major fall sale of big-ticket impressionist and modern art.

Springis one of the highlights at Christie's on Wednesday. It was first presented at the 1882 Paris Salon. It's been in the same American collection for over a century and has been on loan at the National Gallery of Art for the last two decades.

• Van Gogh painting may fetch $50 million at New York auction

Manet painted actress Jeanne Demarsy in a floral dress and bonnet in 1881 as an allegory of spring. It could fetch up to $35 million US.

Christie's also is featuring property of Academy Award-winning actress Joan Fontaine, including a 1935 painting by Marc Chagall, Vase of Flowers in the Window,which could fetch up to $600,000 US on Thursday.

Van Gogh, Giacometti exceed expectations

The sale kicked off Tuesday at Sotheby's with Chariot,a rare 1951 bronze sculpture by Alberto Giacometti fetching $101 million US. The price almost broke the $104.3 million US record for the Swiss artist.

Also on Tuesday, a rare piece of artwork painted by Vincent van Gogh weeks before his death sold for $61.8 million US. The 1890 painting, Still Life, Vase With Daisies and Poppies,had been expected to fetch between $30 million USand $50 million US.

The auction record for a van Gogh is $82.5 million US.

Another important sculpture sold at Sotheby's was Amedeo Modigliani's Tete.It fetched $70.7 million US, just topping the previous auction record for the artist at $69 million.