It was a near perfect run for the photography of offer in Phillips’ string of 20th Century & Contemporary Art sales last week. Aside from one Cindy Sherman film still which failed to sell, everything else found a buyer, most above their estimate ranges. When the dust settled, the top lot early Gilbert & George work was the top photography outcome, and with a little help from some frothy interest in a group of recent Gerhard Richter prints, the Total Sale Proceeds for photography (of roughly £1.1M) came in above the high end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 18 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £760000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £1082000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 17 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 1 |
| Buy In % | 5.56% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £1149120 |
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 | £3000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £5040 |
| Mid Total Lots | 5 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 5 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 0 |
| Mid Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £74000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £94500 |
| Total High Lots | 12 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 11 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 1 |
| High Buy In % | 8.33% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £10005000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £1049580 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 33, Gilbert & George, Dusty Corners No. 8, 1975, estimated at £250000-350000; it was also the top photography outcome of the sales at £252000 (image above, via Phillips).
94.12% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there was just 1 positive surprise in the sales (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (image above, via Phillips):
Lot 325, Gerhard Richter, Six works: (i) Cage 1; (ii) Cage 2; (iii) Cage 3; (iv) Cage 4; (v) Cage 5; (vi) Cage 6, 2020, estimated at £30000-40000, sold at £176400
The complete lot by lot results can be found here (Evening), here (Righi), and here (Day).
