Led by a portrait of the Queen and Prince Philip by Thomas Struth, the photography lots sprinkled through a run of three of the contemporary art sales at Christie’s in London last week generally performed to expectations. Aside from a pass on one of the top lots (yet another Wolfgang Tillmans abstraction), the overall Buy-In rate for photography was under 25%, and the Total Sales Proceeds for photography (of roughly £615K) came in just under the low end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 29 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £681500 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £1015000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 22 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 7 |
| Buy In % | 24.14% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £618156 |
Here is the breakdown (using our usual Low, Mid, and High price tier definitions). Given changing exchange rates, we have adjusted the break points between tiers to better match $10000 and $50000:
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 13 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 9 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 4 |
| Low Buy In % | 30.77% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £53000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £48636 |
| Mid Total Lots | 12 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 10 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 2 |
| Mid Buy In % | 16.67% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £242000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £197820 |
| Total High Lots | 4 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 3 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 1 |
| High Buy In % | 25.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £720000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £371700 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was tied between two lots, both estimated at £150000-250000 or £180000-250000: lot 1, Thomas Struth, Queen Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh, Windsor Castle, 2011/2012, and lot 310, Wolfgang Tillmans, Freischwimmer 187, 2011. The Struth print (image above, via Christie’s) was the top photography outcome of the sale at £163800, while the Tillmans print did not sell.
100.00% of the photo lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were no positive surprises in the sales (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate).
Complete lot by lot results can be found here (20th/21st Century: London Evening), here (A Place With No Name), and here (Post-War and Contemporary Art Day).
