Christie’s is trying something new with its paired Masterpieces of Design & Photography sale coming up in London. The auction puts together top end works from both mediums, alternating back and forth across a short but tightly edited sale. With superlative furniture examples from Newson, Ponti, Mollino, Prouvé, Niemeyer, and Rietveld wandering by in the periphery, the selection of expensive photographs is worth a look. A early Gilbert & George black and white work leads the photographic offerings, with rarities from Mapplethorpe, Cameron, and De Meyer mixed in with contemporary powerhouses from Gursky, Tillmans, Struth, and others. Overall, there are a total of 15 lots of photography available in the sale, with a Total High Estimate for photography of £4560000.
Here’s the statistical breakdown:
| Preview Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including £5000) | 0 |
| Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of low lots) | £0 |
| Total Mid Lots (high estimate between £5000 and £25000) | 0 |
| Total Mid Estimate | £0 |
| Total High Lots (high estimate above £25000) | 15 |
| Total High Estimate | £4560000 |
The top photography lot by High estimate is lot 21, Gilbert & George, Red Morning (Hell), 1977, estimated at £800000-1200000 (image above, via Christie’s).
Each included artist is represented by a single work. Other lots of interest include (images above, via Christie’s):
Lot 7, Andreas Gursky, May Day IV, 2000, estimated at £500000-700000
Lot 12, Robert Mapplethorpe, Self-Portrait, 1988, estimated at £300000-500000
Lot 23, Julia Margaret Cameron, Sappho, Mary Hillier, 1865, estimated at £50000-70000
The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.
