The results from Christie’s recent Modern Visions: Exceptional Photographs sale last week were surprisingly strong. As has been reported elsewhere in fuller detail, the lots in this sale came from the collection of Phil Rivkin and were part of a forced government sale associated with charges of fraud. As a result, many of the lots were offered with low or no reserve. This produced some skewed results. On one hand, the overall Buy-In rate was very low for such a large sale (under 10%); on the other, nearly a third of the lots that did sell found buyers for prices under the pre-sale reserve, so there were some bargains to be had for those who did the work to look closely and assess condition carefully.
What really drove the success of this sale were the large number of positive surprises, a total of 32 in all, at all price levels. Brancusi prints continued to soar to frothy heights, and exceptional vintage material from Lange, Strand, Stieglitz, and others drew meaningful attention. Overall, the Total Sale Proceeds came in at roughly $8.9M, well above the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 279 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $5357500 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $8050000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 252 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 27 |
| Buy In % | 9.68% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $8888940 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 122 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 113 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 9 |
| Low Buy In % | 7.38% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $748000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $738690 |
| Mid Total Lots | 132 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 116 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 16 |
| Mid Buy In % | 12.12% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $3052000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $3246500 |
| Total High Lots | 25 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 23 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 2 |
| High Buy In % | 8.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $4250000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $4903750 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 4, Edward Steichen, In Memoriam, 1901/1904-1905, estimated at $400000-600000; it sold for $665000 (image in preview post). The top outcome of the sale was lot 18, Gustave Le Gray, Bateaux Quittant le Port du Havre (Navires de la Flotte de Napoleon III), 1856-1857, estimated at $300000-500000, sold at $965000 (image in preview post).
Only 67.86% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range, but there were a total of 32 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Christie’s):
Lot 12, F. Holland Day, Untitled (Maynard White/Sailor on Rock, Torso), c1910, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $42500
Lot 16, Alfred Stieglitz, The Flat-Iron, 1903, estimated at $25000-35000, sold at $87500
Lot 21, Ben Shahn, Men with Hats, Listening, 1934, estimated at $8000-12000, sold at $27500
Lot 28, Paul Strand, Taos, New Mexico, Ranchos Church #2, 1931, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $106250
Lot 44, Constantin Brancusi, L’Atelier, c1927, estimated at $40000-60000, sold at $197000
Lot 45, Constantin Brancusi, Mademoiselle Pogany II, 1920, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $106250
Lot 51, František Drtikol, Nude, 1927, estimated at $15000-25000, sold at $50000
Lot 53, Ilse Bing, Cancan, Moulin Rouge, Paris, 1931/1941, estimated at $6000-8000, sold at $16250
Lot 55, Heinz Hajek-Halke, Erotik – ganz gross!, 1928-1932, estimated at $15000-20000, sold at $47500
Lot 63, Dorothea Lange, Migrant Mother, 1936, estimated at $80000-120000, sold at $389000
Lot 119, František Drtikol, Mother Earth, c1931, estimated at $2000-3000, sold at $6875
Lot 126, Constantin Brancusi, (bois) Mme. L.R., 1914, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $112500
Lot 127, Constantin Brancusi, Self-Portrait in his Studio, c1922, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $100000
Lot 128, Constantin Brancusi, Femme se regardant dans un miroir, 1909, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $43750
Lot 130, Henry Moore, Four Part Leaf Figure, 1952, estimated at $2000-3000, sold at $16250
Lot 139, Jaroslav Rossler, Egg and Eiffel Tower, c1930, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $30000
Lot 140, Alexander Rodchenko, Glass and Light, 1927, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $15000
Lot 143, Ilse Bing, From My Window, New York, 1951, estimated at $1500-2000, sold at $6000
Lot 145, Ilse Bing, Chair with Dead Leaves, Jardin de Luxembourg, Paris, 1952, estimated at $1500-2000, sold at $7500
Lot 163, Josef Sudek, From the series ‘The Window of my Studio’, 1950, estimated at $6000-8000, sold at $40000
Lot 171, Josef Sudek, From the series ‘In the Magic Garden’, 1950s, estimated at $6000-8000, sold at $17500
Lot 197, Edward Weston, Nude on Sand, Oceano, 1936, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $45000
Lot 203, Eugène Atget, Pont des Tuileries, 1911, estimated at $8000-10000, sold at $20000
Lot 210, David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson, Miss Munro, daughter of Sheriff Munro, c1845, estimated at $1000-1500, sold at $3000
Lot 214, Adolphe Braun, Basel, View from the Hôtel des Trois Rois, c1870, estimated at $2000-3000, sold at $8125
Lot 226, Gertrude Käsebier, Happy Days, 1903, estimated at $15000-20000, sold at $40000
Lot 239, Heinrich Kühn, Study in Tonal Values III (Mary Warner), c1910, estimated at $6000-8000, sold at $35000
Lot 254, Alfred Stieglitz, Winter – Fifth Avenue, 1893, estimated at $15000-20000, sold at $65000
Lot 263, Arthur Rothstein, Saloon, Silver Peak, Nevada, 1940, estimated at $1500-2000, sold at $6875
Lot 266, Paul Strand, The Lighthouse, Prospect Harbor, Maine, 1945, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $43750
Lot 274, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Rue Mouffetard, 1954/later, estimated at $12000-18000, sold at $37500
Lot 285, Diane Arbus, Mia Villiers-Farrow on a bed, 1964, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $16250
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
