The consistently solid outcomes for the Ansel Adams prints included in the recent Photographs auction at Hindman in Chicago helped propel the sale to a notable outcome. Nearly all of the Adams prints included in the sale sold above their estimate ranges, so even with an overall Buy-In rate above 40%, there was enough momentum to drive the numbers upward. With a few additional positive surprises, the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $950K) fell near the top end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 154 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $697200 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $1001600 |
| Total Lots Sold | 89 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 65 |
| Buy In % | 42.21% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $952938 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High price range definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 139 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 79 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 60 |
| Low Buy In % | 43.17% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $453600 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $268758 |
| Mid Total Lots | 12 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 7 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 5 |
| Mid Buy In % | 41.67% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $348000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $375480 |
| Total High Lots | 3 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 3 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 0 |
| High Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $210000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $308700 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 19, Ansel Adams, Portfolio VI (incomplete, 9 prints), 1974, estimated at $60000-80000; it sold at $107100, but it was not the top outcome of the sale. That honor went to lot 15, Ansel Adams, The Teton Range and Snake River, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, 1942/c1974, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $138600 (image above, via Hindman).
70.79% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 8 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate)(images above via Hindman):
Lot 15, Ansel Adams, The Teton Range and Snake River, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, 1942/c1974, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $138600
Lot 17, Ansel Adams, Laguna Pueblo, New Mexico, 1928/c1974, estimated at $2000-3000, sold at $9450
Lot 27, Wynn Bullock, Girl on Beach, 1968, estimated at $1000-2000, sold at $4095
Lot 57, Margaret Bourke-White, Mass Production and the Man: A Scene at the Ford Plant, 1929, estimated at $7000-9000, sold at $21420
Lot 62, Margaret Bourke-White, Chrysler Corporation (Gears), 1929, estimated at $7000-9000, sold at $20160
Lot 79, Harold Edgerton, Explosion of the Atomic Bomb (2 prints), c1945/later, estimated at $1000-2000, sold at $4095
Lot 136, Inge Morath, Giacometti in His Studio in Paris, France, 1958/later, estimated at $1000-2000, sold at $4410
Lot 149, Ansel Adams, Mormon Temple, Monti, Utah, 1948, estimated at $1500-2500, sold at $5985
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
