Hampered by several passes of high priced Andreas Gursky prints, the photography included in Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Evening and Day Auctions last week in London never really gathered much momentum. The overall Buy-In rate for photography hovered in the mid 30s and there were a few positive surprises, but without the punch of those big ticket lots, the Total Sale Proceeds fell well below the low-end of the pre-sale range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 54 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £2049000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £2966000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 36 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 18 |
| Buy In % | 33.33% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £1489250 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 3 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 2 |
| Low Buy In % | 66.67% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £11000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £7500 |
| Mid Total Lots | 26 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 19 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 7 |
| Mid Buy In % | 26.92% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £335000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £237000 |
| Total High Lots | 25 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 16 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 9 |
| High Buy In % | 36.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £2620000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £1244750 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 51, Andreas Gursky, Pyongyang II, 2007, estimated at £450000-650000; it did not sell (image in preview post). The top photography outcome in the two sales was lot 13, Richard Prince, Untitled (Cowboys), 1980-1984, estimated at £200000-300000, sold at £263000 (image in preview post).
86.11% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 4 positive surprises in the sales (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Sotheby’s):
Lot 102, Haley Mellin, Richter JPG_Toilet Paper 3, 2014, estimated at £2000-3000, sold at £7500
Lot 378, Idris Khan, Every…Page of the Holy Quran, 2004, estimated at £20000-30000, sold at £75000 (image in preview post)
Lot 422, Gerhard Richter, Babette, 2013, estimated at £20000-30000, sold at £62500
Lot 438, Gerhard Richter, Haggadah (P2), 2014, estimated at £4000-6000, sold at £43750
The complete lot by lot results can be found here (Evening) and here (Day).
