Given the wider diversity of material routinely on offer at Swann Galleries, the results of the auction house’s sales are subject to more inherent variation than its competitors. So while the Total Sale Proceeds for the recent photography sale fell below the pre-sale range, that reality doesn’t seem quite as negative as it does at other houses. The overall Buy-In rate was just over 30%, there were a handful of positive surprises, and the outcomes were relatively consistent across the price tiers. Not so bad, given its nearly single-handed effort to make a market for vernacular material where one didn’t exist before.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 362 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $1598000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $2330200 |
| Total Lots Sold | 247 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 115 |
| Buy In % | 31.77% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $1432146 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 327 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 225 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 102 |
| Low Buy In % | 31.19% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $1395200 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $880596 |
| Mid Total Lots | 32 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 20 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 12 |
| Mid Buy In % | 37.50% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $575000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $267800 |
| 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 | $360000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $283750 |
The top lot by High estimate was tied between two lots: lot 182, Irving Penn, Pablo Picasso at La Californie, Cannes, 1957/1962, and lot 341, Sally Mann, Candy Cigarette, 1989, both estimated at $100000-150000. The Penn did not sell, while the Mann was the top outcome of the sale at $215000 (image in preview post).
82.19% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 6 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Swann):
Lot 20, Charles Seaver, Gordon, an Ex-Slave Escaped from Mississippi, 1863, estimated at $1400-1800, sold at $6500
Lot 51, Wilson Bentley, Group of 4 photographs of ice crystals, 1903-1920, estimated at $4000-6000, sold at $13125
Lot 188, Jim Marshall, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Thelonius Monk, 1963, 1970/1993, estimated at $3500-4500, sold at $10000
Lot 225, Group of 6 photobooks from the collection of Monroe Wheeler, estimated at $800-1200, sold at $3750
Lot 267, Malcolm Browne, Burning monk, South Vietnam, 1963, estimated at $700-1000, sold at $2000
Lot 343, Sally Mann, Flipbook, 1979, estimated at $200-300, sold at $780
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
