Auction Results: Photographs, November 6, 2015 @Phillips London

Softness in the top end lots was the undoing of an otherwise solid photography outing at Phillips in London. While the overall Buy-In rate came in at a respectable 26% and there were a few positive surprises to spice things up, it was the failure of all three of the highest priced lots and 10 out of 19 in the top tier that ultimately caused the Total Sale Proceeds to fall just below the low end of the pre-sale range.

The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):

Summary Statistics
Total Lots 119
Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate £1323000
Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate £1846000
Total Lots Sold 87
Total Lots Bought In 32
Buy In % 26.89%
Total Sale Proceeds £1257150

Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):

Detailed Breakdown
Low Total Lots 28
Total Low Lots Sold 21
Total Low Lots Bought In 7
Low Buy In % 25.00%
Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots £100500
Total Proceeds from Low Lots £81750
Mid Total Lots 72
Total Mid Lots Sold 57
Total Mid Lots Bought In 15
Mid Buy In % 20.83%
Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots £772500
Total Proceeds from Mid Lots £680000
Total High Lots 19
Total High Lots Sold 9
Total High Lots Bought In 10
High Buy In % 52.63%
Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots £973000
Total Proceeds from High Lots £495400

The top lot by High estimate is lot 67, Alexander Rodchenko, Steps, 1929, estimated at £140000-180000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 36, Ed Ruscha, Gasoline Stations, 1962/1989, estimated at £40000-60000, sold at £106900. (image above, via Phillips)

97.70% of the photo lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 6 surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate): (images above, via Phillips)

Lot 12, Sante D’Orazio, Christy Turlington with Towel, Panoramic View Hotel, Montauk, 1993/later, estimated at £3000-5000, sold at £11250

Lot 13, Bruce Weber, Lisa Marie, Palm Beach, FL, 1986, estimated at £4000-6000, sold at £13750

Lot 52, Michael Dweck, The Duke’s Mermaid (Sapphire) from Sculptural Form – Surfboard, 2015, estimated at £12000-18000, sold at £37500

Lot 61, René Burri, Sao Paolo, Brazil, 1960/2003, estimated at £4000-6000, sold at £12500

Lot 72, Abelardo Morell, $7 Million, 2006, estimated at £6000-8000, sold at £17500

Lot 105, Nick Brandt, Lions Head to Head, 2008, estimated at £7000-9000, sold at £27500

Complete lot by lot results can be found here.

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Read more about: Abelardo Morell, Bruce Weber, Ed Ruscha, Michael Dweck, Nick Brandt, René Burri, Sante D'Orazio, Phillips

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