In a daring early season move, Christie’s has introduced a solid, vintage-heavy sale into mid-February, giving collectors a reason to sit up and pay attention before the main photography auction season arrives in early April. Divided into evening and day (morning/afternoon) sessions, it is loaded with early 20th century work, particularly Stieglitz, Steichen, Kühn, and their circle; the bookends of 19th century and contemporary imagery are only lightly touched, if at all. It’s also a sale that is meaningfully clustered by artists, with runs of images by EWeston, Sudek, and others piling up as the sale unfolds. Overall, there are a total of 279 lots available across the sale, with a Total High Estimate of $8050000.
Here’s the statistical breakdown:
| Preview Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including $10000) | 122 |
| Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of low lots) | $748000 |
| Total Mid Lots (high estimate between $10000 and $50000) | 132 |
| Total Mid Estimate | $3052000 |
| Total High Lots (high estimate above $50000) | 25 |
| Total High Estimate | $4250000 |
The top lot by High estimate is lot 4, Edward Steichen, In Memoriam, 1901/1904-1905, estimated at $400000-600000 (image above, via Christie’s).
Here’s the complete list of photographers with six or more lots in the sale, along with the number of lots on offer:
| Multiple Lots For Sale | |
|---|---|
| Edward Weston | 26 |
| Alfred Steiglitz | 25 |
| Josef Sudek | 16 |
| Edward Steichen | 14 |
| Diane Arbus | 11 |
| Bill Brandt | 11 |
| Henri Cartier-Bresson | 11 |
| Heinrich Kühn | 11 |
| Brassaï | 9 |
| Eugène Atget | 6 |
| Erwin Blumenfeld | 6 |
| Man Ray | 6 |
| Paul Strand | 6 |
Other lots of interest include (images above, via Christie’s):
Lot 10, Edward Steichen, The Pool – Evening: A Symphony to a Race and to a Soul, 1899, estimated at $150000-250000
Lot 14, Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O’Keeffe with African Statuary, c1919, estimated at $250000-350000
Lot 18, Gustave Le Gray, Bateaux Quittant le Port du Havre (Navires de la Flotte de Napoleon III), 1856-1857, estimated at $300000-500000
Lot 32, Edward Weston, Shell, 1927, estimated at $250000-350000
The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here (Evening and Day).
