The various owner Photographs sale at Sotheby’s next week follows a now familiar pattern – a run of Ansel Adams prints to start, followed by a solid selection of largely 20th century material. As an exception to this rule, a 19th century Western survey album from Timothy O’Sullivan and William Bell leads the sale, but key prints from Edward Weston, Edward Steichen, Diane Arbus, Robert Frank, and Lewis Baltz generally provide the ballast. Overall, there are a total of 188 lots available in the sale, with a Total High Estimate of $5600000.
Here’s the statistical breakdown:
| Preview Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including $10000) | 82 |
| Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of low lots) | $660000 |
| Total Mid Lots (high estimate between $10000 and $50000) | 88 |
| Total Mid Estimate | $2120000 |
| Total High Lots (high estimate above $50000) | 18 |
| Total High Estimate | $2820000 |
The top lot by High estimate is lot 44, Timothy O’Sullivan and William Bell, ‘PHOTOGRAPHS SHOWING LANDSCAPES, GEOLOGICAL AND OTHER FEATURES, OF PORTIONS OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY OF THE UNITED STATES, OBTAINED IN CONNECTION WITH GEOGRAPHICAL AND GEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS AND SURVEYS WEST OF THE 100TH MERIDIAN (SEASONS OF 1871, 1872 AND 1873)’ – album of 49 albumen prints, 1871-1873, estimated at $300000-500000 (image above, via Sotheby’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 | |
|---|---|
| Ansel Adams | 17 |
| Peter Beard | 5 |
| Henri Cartier-Bresson | 5 |
| Diane Arbus | 4 |
| Edward Weston | 4 |
| Robert Frank | 4 |
| Philippe Halsman | 4 |
| Robert Heinecken | 4 |
| Robert Mapplethorpe | 4 |
| Irving Penn | 4 |
Other lots of interest include (images above, via Sotheby’s):
Lot 48, Edward Steichen, Self-Portrait, c1900, estimated at $100000-200000
Lot 77, Diane Arbus, Young Boy with a Button Flag in a Pro-War Parade N. Y. C.’ (PATRIOTIC YOUNG MAN), 1967, estimated at $70000-100000
Lot 84, Lewis Baltz, Tract House #24, 1971, estimated at $30000-50000
Lot 100, Robert Frank, Miami (Elevator, Miami Beach Hotel), 1955/1960s, estimated at $80000-120000
Lot 114, Edward Weston, Shells, 1927, estimated at $150000-250000
The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.
