When the top lot fails to sell, it inevitably impacts the final tally. This was clearly evident in the photography results from the Modern & Contemporary Art auctions at Phillips in London last week. The top photo lot Andreas Gursky print passed, dropping the top lot honors to a much more modest Peter Beard print. The rest of the photography on offer performed solidly, but it wasn’t enough to save the totals. Without any positive surprises to buoy the numbers, the Total Sale Proceeds for photography (of roughly £240K) came in 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 | 6 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £272000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £420000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 5 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 1 |
| Buy In % | 16.67% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £241230 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 0 |
| Low Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £7000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £9030 |
| Mid Total Lots | 2 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 2 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 0 |
| Mid Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £48000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £77400 |
| 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 | £365000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £154800 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 26, Andreas Gursky, Love Parade, 2001, estimated at £150000-250000: it did not sell. The top photography outcome of the sale was lot 79, Peter Beard, Single Cheetah, 1960/2007, estimated at £50000-70000, sold at £83850 (image above, via Phillips).
100.00% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were no positive surprises in the sales (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate).
The complete lot by lot results can be found here (Evening) and here (Day).
