While there were no photographs included in the Evening portion of the 20th Century & Contemporary Art sales last week in London at Phillips, the Day sale had a small selection of photographs worth discovering. The top photography lot was an early black-and-white work by Gilbert & George (from 1975), which found a buyer within its estimate range. The rest of the photographs in the sale generally met expectations, with a Buy-In rate for photography of 20%, but no positive surprises. When the dust settled, the Total Sale Proceeds for photography (of roughly £320K) fell at 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 | 10 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £318000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £467000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 8 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 2 |
| Buy In % | 20.00% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £320231 |
Here is the breakdown (using our usual Low, Mid, and High price tier definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 0 |
| Low Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £8000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £4826 |
| Mid Total Lots | 4 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 3 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 1 |
| Mid Buy In % | 25.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £59000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £52705 |
| Total High Lots | 5 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 4 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 1 |
| High Buy In % | 20.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £400000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £262700 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 196, Gilbert & George, DUSTY CORNERS No. 16, 1975, estimated at £100000-150000; it was also the top photography outcome of the sale at £139700 (image above, via Phillips).
75.00% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were no positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate).
The complete lot by lot results can be found here (Day).
