The results from the recent Photographs from the Ginny Williams Collection sale at Sotheby’s in New York solidly met expectations. The top Lot Tina Modotti print sold above its estimate range (at $500K), the overall Buy-In rate was under 25%, and half a dozen positive surprises pumped the numbers up a bit. In the end, the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $2.3M) came in near the top of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 94 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $1583800 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $2425200 |
| Total Lots Sold | 71 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 23 |
| Buy In % | 24.47% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $2292250 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 36 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 31 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 5 |
| Low Buy In % | 13.89% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $238200 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $194750 |
| Mid Total Lots | 53 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 35 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 18 |
| Mid Buy In % | 33.96% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $1217000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $841250 |
| Total High Lots | 5 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 5 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 0 |
| High Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $970000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $1256250 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 58, Tina Modotti, Interior of Church Tower at Tepotzotlán, 1924, estimated at $200000-300000; it was also the top outcome of the sale at $500000 (image above via Sotheby’s.)
74.65% 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 Sotheby’s):
Lot 16, Robert Mapplethorpe, Lisa Lyon, 1981, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $106250
Lot 47, Margaret Bourke-White, Sierra Madre Mountains, 1935, estimated at $20000-30000, sold at $81250
Lot 52, Ruth Bernhard, Two Leaves, 1952/later, estimated at $800-1200, sold at $2500
Lot 62, Edward Weston, Dunes, Oceano, 1936, estimated at $120000-180000, sold at $375000
Lot 63, Dorothea Lange, White Angel Breadline, San Francisco, 1933/posthumous, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $20000
Lot 67, Dorothea Lange, One of the Homeless Wandering Boys Drifting in the Country Before CCC, c1933, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $37500
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
