Too many lots selling below their estimate ranges led to softness in the results of the recent Photographs sale at Doyle in New York. More than 53% of the lots that found buyers did so under their estimate ranges, and while there were a number of low priced positive surprises, their momentum wasn’t enough to pull up the overall numbers. In the end, the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $580K) came in below 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 | 150 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $631400 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $950500 |
| Total Lots Sold | 113 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 37 |
| Buy In % | 24.67% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $588418 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High price range definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 140 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 106 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 34 |
| Low Buy In % | 24.29% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $318500 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $186478 |
| Mid Total Lots | 6 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 5 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 1 |
| Mid Buy In % | 16.67% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $112000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $61740 |
| Total High Lots | 4 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 2 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 2 |
| High Buy In % | 50.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $520000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $340200 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 44, Walker Evans, Forty-six gelatin photographs dating from his 1933 trip to Cuba, 1933, estimated at $200000-300000; it sold at $163800. The top outcome of the sale was lot 15, Felice Beato, Photographic Views of Japan with Historical and Descriptive Notes, c1869, estimated at $40000-60000, sold at $176400 (image above, via Doyle).
Only 46.90% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range, and there were a total of 12 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Doyle):
Lot 9, David Armstrong, Thiebaud, Paris, 2005, estimated at $500-800, sold at $1764
Lot 15, Felice Beato, Photographic Views of Japan with Historical and Descriptive Notes, c1869, estimated at $40000-60000, sold at $176400
Lot 17, Lynda Benglis, Three works. Minibird; Bauhinia; and Rhodi, c2002-2003, estimated $1000-1500, sold at $3150
Lot 21, Margaret Bourke-White, Self-Portrait in Aviator’s Suit, with fourteen other prints by the artist, 1943/1957, estimated at $700-1000, sold at $2268
Lot 24, Margaret Bourke-White, Sierra Madre Mountains, California, 1935, estimated at $3000-5000, sold at $10800
Lot 37, John Dugdale, Self-portrait with Venetian Man, 1997, estimated at $700-1000, sold at $3150
Lot 60, Peter Hujar, Candy Darling on her Death Bed, 1973/1980s, estimated at $5000-8000, sold at $23940
Lot 65, Michael Kenna, Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England, 1990, estimated at $400-600, sold at $1260
Lot 69, Fred McDarrah, Three vintage gelatin silver prints. Comprises Kusama at Gallery Gertrude Stein, December 21, 1963; Kusama Does Election Day Demonstration, Varick Street, November 3, 1968; and Yayoi Kusama in her Studio, June 1, 1963, 1968, 1967, estimated at $1000-1500, sold at $5040
Lot 73, Eadweard Muybridge, Chickens scared by a torpedo, c1887, estimated at $300-600, sold at $1386
Lot 120, Alfred Wertheimer, Group of three gelatin silver prints of Charles Manuel “Sweet Daddy” Grace, 1950s, estimated at $800-1200, sold at $5040
Lot 150, Various, Photobooks (approximately 60 volumes), estimated at $700-1000, sold at 3465
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
