An overly high Buy-In rate (of nearly 39%) softened the results of the various owner photography sale at Christie’s in Paris last week. A coal bunker typology by Bernd and Hilla Becher took the top lot honors, and while there were a number of positive surprises, they weren’t enough to pull the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly €1.3M) up to catch 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 | 118 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | €1387000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | €2004000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 72 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 46 |
| Buy In % | 38.98% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | €1330625 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 48 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 31 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 17 |
| Low Buy In % | 35.42% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | €250000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | €214375 |
| Mid Total Lots | 57 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 34 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 23 |
| Mid Buy In % | 40.35% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | €959000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | €615000 |
| Total High Lots | 13 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 7 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 6 |
| High Buy In % | 46.15% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | €795000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | €501250 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 50, Irving Penn, Black and White Vogue Cover (Jean Patchett), New York, 1950/1976, estimated at €80000-120000; it sold for €118750. The top outcome of the sale was lot 16, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Coal Bunkers, Frontal Views, 1968-1993, estimated at €60000-80000, sold at €137500 (image above, via Christie’s).
98.61% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 9 surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above, via Christie’s):
Lot 21, Luigi Ghirri, Milano, Studio di A. Rossi (n°405), 1989/2001, estimated at €4000-6000, sold at €12500
Lot 28, Brassaï, Le Roi Soleil, Paris, 1952, estimated at €5000-7000, sold at €23750
Lot 33, Nobuyoshi Araki, Sans titre (Standing Bound Nude), from A Nikki/A Diary, 1994, estimated at €2000-3000, sold at €8125
Lot 36, Nobuyoshi Araki, Sans titre, 1983, estimated at €2000-3000, sold at €6875
Lot 37, Anton Corbijn, Bono (Bath), New York, 1992, estimated at €4000-6000, sold at €16250
Lot 84, Jeanloup Sieff, Derrière Blanc, Paris, 1985, estimated at €2000-3000, sold at €8125
Lot 95, Robert Mapplethorpe, Maryanne, 1988, estimated at €7000-9000, sold at €20000
Lot 100, Francesca Woodman, Space2, Providence, Rhode Island, 1976/later, estimated at €4000-6000, sold at €20000
Lot 108, Peter Beard, Giraffes in Mirage on the Taru Desert, Kenya, June 1960, 1960/1990, estimated at €12000-18000, sold at €40000
Complete lot by lot results can be found here.
