The photographic material in Sotheby’s recent Armory week Contemporary Art sale clearly didn’t attract much attention. The results of the sale were pretty dismal, with a Buy-In rate for photography over 50% and Total Sale Proceeds for photography coming in way under the low estimate.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 32 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $499000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $704000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 15 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 17 |
| Buy In % | 53.13% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $271625 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 8 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 4 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 4 |
| Low Buy In % | 50.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $59000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $26500 |
| Mid Total Lots | 22 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 11 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 11 |
| Mid Buy In % | 50.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $505000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $245125 |
| Total High Lots | 2 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 0 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 2 |
| High Buy In % | 100.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $140000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $0 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 137, Mike Kelley and Bob Flanagan, More Love Than Can Ever Be Repaid, 1990, estimated at $60000-80000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 207, Pieter Hugo, Jatto with Mainasara, Ogere-Remo, Nigeria, 2007, estimated at $25000-35000; it sold for $43750.
80.00% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were no surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate).
(Lot 203, Alex Prager, Cindy (from the Big Valley series), 2008, estimated at $5000-7000, sold for $10000. Image via Sotheby’s.)
Complete lot by lot results can be found here.
