The photography included in Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening and Day Auctions travels relatively normal pathways, led by routine top lots from Andreas Gursky and Richard Prince. What’s more intriguing is the migration of a handful of secondary works by Eggleston, Newton, and Mapplethorpe across from the photography sales (where they would normally reside) into the contemporary art day sale, perhaps a sign of growing (or cultivating) interest on the part of contemporary collectors. Overall, there are a total of 54 lots of photography available across the two sales, with a Total High Estimate for photography of £2966000.
Here’s the statistical breakdown:
| Preview Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including £5000) | 3 |
| Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of low lots) | £11000 |
| Total Mid Lots (high estimate between £5000 and £25000) | 26 |
| Total Mid Estimate | £335000 |
| Total High Lots (high estimate above £25000) | 25 |
| Total High Estimate | £2620000 |
The top photography lot by High estimate is lot 51, Andreas Gursky, Pyongyang II, 2007, estimated at £450000-650000 (image above, via Sotheby’s).
Here’s the complete list of photographers with two or more lots in the sales, along with the number of lots on offer:
| Multiple Lots For Sale | |
|---|---|
| Andreas Gursky | 5 |
| Thomas Ruff | 4 |
| Cindy Sherman | 4 |
| Gerhard Richter | 3 |
| Matthew Barney | 2 |
| William Eggleston | 2 |
| Mike Kelley | 2 |
| Vik Muniz | 2 |
| Richard Prince | 2 |
| Piotr Uklanski | 2 |
Other lots of interest include (images above, via Sotheby’s):
Lot 13, Richard Prince, Untitled (Cowboys), 1980-1984, estimated at £200000-300000
Lot 181, Mike Kelley, Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction #11 (Catholic Girl), 2004-2005, estimated at £10000-15000
Lot 319, Doug Aitken, New Opposition IV, 2003, estimated at £10000-15000
Lot 378, Idris Khan, Every…Page of the Holy Quran, 2004, estimated at £20000-30000
Lot 460, Thomas Ruff, JPEG BB01, 2005, estimated at £25000-30000
The complete lot by lot catalogs can be found here (Evening) and here (Day).
