On the back of a respectable 23% Buy-In rate, Phillips’ recent various owner Photographs sale in London delivered solid results and took the prize for the most photo revenue of the three main houses during the week. Even with the top lot Arbus print failing to sell, there were enough positive surprises to bring the Total Sale Proceeds comfortably into the middle of the pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 144 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £1592000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £2223000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 111 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 33 |
| Buy In % | 22.92% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £1736500 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 38 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 29 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 9 |
| Low Buy In % | 23.68% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £135000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £127000 |
| Mid Total Lots | 86 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 68 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 18 |
| Mid Buy In % | 20.93% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £897000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £824000 |
| Total High Lots | 20 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 14 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 6 |
| High Buy In % | 30.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £1216000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £785500 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 89, Diane Arbus, Identical Twins, Roselle, NJ, 1967, estimated at £250000-350000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 23, Herb Ritts, Versace Dress, Back View, El Mirage, 1990, estimated at £70000-90000, sold at £158500.
97.30% of the photo lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 8 surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images below via Sotheby’s):
Lot 15, William Klein, Simone +Nina, Piazza di Spagna, Rome(Vogue), 1960/later, estimated at £4002000-3000, sold at £7500
Lot 18, Wolfgang Tillmans, Anemone II, 2003/2004, estimated at £2000-3000, sold at £9375
Lot 28, Guy Bourdin, Charles Jourdan, Spring, 1976/later, estimated at £4000-6000, sold at £12500
Lot 32, Miroslav Tichý, Untitled, 1950-1980, estimated at £1500-2000, sold at £5250
Lot 33, Miroslav Tichý, Untitled, 1950-1980, estimated at £2000-3000, sold at £6250
Lot 114, Nick Brandt, Portrait of Zebra Mother and Baby, Ngorongoro, 2005, estimated at £2000-3000, sold at £8125
Lot 116, Ruud van Empel, Boy & Girl, 2008, estimated at £30000-40000, sold at £80500
Lot 132, Elliott Erwitt, California, 1955/later, estimated at £1500-2000, sold at £6000
Complete lot by lot results can be found here.
