Even though the photography in Phillips’ recent Contemporary Art sales in London had a decently high overall Buy-In rate (almost 29%) and there were no positive surprises, general consistency across the sale helped bring the Total Sale Proceeds into the middle of the pre-sale range. The top lot Matthew Barney work sold above its estimate, as did enough other photographs to ensure an expectation-meeting outcome.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 21 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £216000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £320000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 15 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 6 |
| Buy In % | 28.57% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £280625 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 0 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | NA |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | NA |
| Low Buy In % | NA |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £0 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £0 |
| Mid Total Lots | 18 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 13 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 5 |
| Mid Buy In % | 27.78% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £205000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £155625 |
| Total High Lots | 3 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 2 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 1 |
| High Buy In % | 33.33% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £115000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £125000 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 207, Matthew Barney, Cremaster 4: Triple Option (Triptych), 1994, estimated at £30000-50000 (image in preview post). It was also the top photographic outcome of the sales at £68750.
95.24% of the 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). One noteworthy outcome was lot 101, Wolfgang Tillmans, Paper Drop-Haze, 2011, estimated at £15000-20000, sold at £21250 (image above via Phillips).
The complete lot by lot results can be found here (Evening) and here (Day).
