The photography included in the last auction of 2024 to be statistically tracked by us, a First Open online sale at Christie’s earlier this week, didn’t provide much in the way of excitement. The top photo lots (works by Hiroshi Sugimoto and Florian Maier-Aichen) either didn’t sell or sold below their estimate ranges, leaving a print by Nan Goldin to rise to the head of the class. With just a few positive surprises to offset the many lots that sold below their estimates, the Total Sale Proceeds for photography (of roughly $530K) tallied up below the low end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 55 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $580500 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $870000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 45 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 10 |
| Buy In % | 18.18% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $528570 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 29 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 28 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 1 |
| Low Buy In % | 3.45% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $169000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $165060 |
| Mid Total Lots | 24 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 16 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 8 |
| Mid Buy In % | 33.33% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $581000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $338310 |
| Total High Lots | 2 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 1 |
| High Buy In % | 50.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $120000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $25200 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was tied between two lots, each estimated at $40000-60000: lot 195, Florian Maier-Aichen, Untitled (Saddle Peak), 2004, and lot 209, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Sir Winston Churchill, 1999; the Maier-Aichen lot sold at $25200, while the Sugimoto lot did not sell. The top photography outcome of the sale was lot 183, Nan Goldin, Black, 2016, estimated at $20000-30000, sold at $56700 (image above, via Christie’s).
53.33% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were 4 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above, via Christie’s):
Lot 179, Walead Beshty, TBD (Los Angeles, California, October 21, 2013-January 31, 2014), 2014, estimated at $6000-8000, sold at $20160
Lot 201, Paul Pfeiffer, Four Horseman of the Apocalypse No. 24, 2006, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $21420
Lot 370, Gilbert & George, Post Card Sculpture, 1975, estimated at $4000-6000, sold at $12600
Lot 412, Gabriel Orozco, Round Mirror Distance, 2001, estimated at $3000-5000, sold at v$10710
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
