The results for the photography buried in Sotheby’s recent Contemporary Curated sale in New York were largely lackluster. While the top photo lot Gursky did find a buyer, the overall Buy-In rate for photography was too high (over 48%) and there were too few positive surprises to generate much forward momentum. As a result, the Total Sale Proceeds feel below the aggregate pre-sale low estimate.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 33 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $908000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $1251000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 17 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 16 |
| Buy In % | 48.48% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $800125 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 5 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 4 |
| Low Buy In % | 80.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $38000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $6250 |
| Mid Total Lots | 25 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 14 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 11 |
| Mid Buy In % | 44.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $533000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $282625 |
| 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 | $680000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $511250 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 207, Andreas Gursky, PCF, Paris, 2003, estimated at $350000-450000; it was also the top photo outcome of the sale at $430000 (image in preview post).
94.12% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range, and there was only 1 positive surprise in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (image above via Sotheby’s):
Lot 302, Richard Prince, Untitled (52 Tweets), 2014, estimated at $8000-12000, sold at $32500
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
