The photography on offer in Phillips’ recent New Now sale in London didn’t deliver much in the way of excitement. Given that many of the lots were available without reserves, the Buy-In rate for photography was solid (at roughly 22%) but that positive figure was counterbalanced by plenty of lots selling below their estimate ranges. In the end, the Total Sale Proceeds for photography flirted with the low end of the aggregate pre-sale range, but didn’t ultimately clear that hurdle.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 44 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £252000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £374000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 34 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 10 |
| Buy In % | 22.73% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £248688 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 21 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 18 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 3 |
| Low Buy In % | 14.29% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £73000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £60438 |
| Mid Total Lots | 22 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 15 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 7 |
| Mid Buy In % | 31.82% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £251000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £153250 |
| Total High Lots | 1 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 0 |
| High Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £50000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £35000 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 143, Vik Muniz, Reversal Black Marilyn, 2003, estimated at £30000-50000 (image in preview post). It was also the top photography outcome of the sale at £35000.
Only 58.82% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 3 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Phillips):
Lot 141, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Basquiat’s Mother and friends (3), 1984, estimated at £2000-3000, sold at £8750
Lot 224, Dash Snow, No White Lady, I Don’t Want Yer Purse, 2006-2007, estimated at £3000-5000, sold at £10625
Lot 243, Collier Schorr, Blow-up, 1999, estimated at £1000-2000, sold at £5250
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
