In addition to its various owner photographs sale the day before, Christie’s also has a single owner collection sale on deck for the week of Paris Photo. Split into two sessions on November 13 and 14, the works come from the collection of Shalom Shpilman, and the proceeds of the sale are to be reinvested in the Shpilman Institute of Photography (here). Led by a Thomas Struth image of the Rothko Chapel, the auction is filled with vintage imagery (mostly European), much of it abstraction, surrealism, or variants thereof. This is not a collection of the same old stuff that floats through the secondary markets – there are plenty of unusual finds and vintage rarities here, especially for collectors of abstract photography. Overall, there are a total of 210 lots on offer in this sale, with a Total High Estimate of €4486000.
Here’s the statistical breakdown:
| Preview Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including €7500) | 79 |
| Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of low lots) | €433000 |
| Total Mid Lots (high estimate between €7500 and €35000) | 108 |
| Total Mid Estimate | €1723000 |
| Total High Lots (high estimate above €35000) | 23 |
| Total High Estimate | €2330000 |
The top lot by High estimate is lot 259, Thomas Struth, The Rothko Chapel, Houston, 2007, estimated at €300000-400000. (image above, via Christie’s)
Here’s the complete list of photographers with four or more lots in the sale, along with the number of lots on offer:
| Multiple Lots For Sale | |
|---|---|
| Man Ray | 7 |
| Walead Beshty | 6 |
| Thomas Struth | 6 |
| Brassaï | 5 |
| György Kepes | 5 |
| Erwin Blumenfeld | 4 |
| Francis Bruguière | 4 |
| André Kertész | 4 |
| Shinichi Maruyama | 4 |
| Josef Sudek | 4 |
| Hiroshi Sugimoto | 4 |
| Maurice Tabard | 4 |
Other lots of interest include (images above, via Christie’s):
Lot 204, Wols, Komposition, 1935, estimated at €70000-80000
Lot 224, Erwin Blumenfeld, Distorted Nude in Shadow, 1945, estimated at €25000-35000
Lot 241, Dora Maar, Les années vous guettent, 1936, estimated at €100000-150000
Lot 250, Edward Steichen, Spectacles, 1927, estimated at €80000-120000
Lot 255, Harry Callahan, Torn Sign, 1946, estimated at €50000-70000
Lot 324, Germaine Krull, Sans titre (de la série Métal), 1923, estimated at €15000-20000
Lot 327, Jaroslav Rössler, Sans titre (abstraction), 1952, estimated at €7000-12000
The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.
