The results of the early summer Photographs Now online sale at Bonhams last week were largely uneventful. The top lot Irving Penn print found a buyer within its estimate range, only to be bested by a large scale Polaroid print by Natalie White. With an overall Buy-In rate above 27% (with one withdrawal) and just a handful of positive surprises, the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $675K) fell just above 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 | 264 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $652400 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $970100 |
| Total Lots Sold | 191 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 73 |
| Buy In % | 27.65% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $676966 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 257 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 186 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 71 |
| Low Buy In % | 27.63% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $841100 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $583014 |
| Mid Total Lots | 7 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 5 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 2 |
| Mid Buy In % | 28.57% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $129000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $93952 |
| Total High Lots | 0 |
| Total High Lots Sold | NA |
| Total High Lots Bought In | NA |
| High Buy In % | NA |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $0 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $0 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 51, Irving Penn, Cuzco Children, Peru, Dec. 1948, 1948/before 1975, estimated at $25000-35000; it sold at $33280 but was not the top outcome of the sale. That honor went to lot 98, Natalie White, Entangled Particles in One Region of Space, 2015, estimated at $4000-6000, sold at $46080 (image above, via Bonhams.)
68.06% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were 6 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above, via Bonhams):
Lot 7, Lucien Clergue, Trois Nus Italiens, 1993/1999, estimated at $1500-2500, sold at $5632
Lot 26, Ansel Adams, Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, 1941/1978, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $33280
Lot 42, Edward Steichen, Road Into the Valley – Moonrise, 1904/1906, estimated at $1000-1500, sold at $12160
Lot 98, Natalie White, Entangled Particles in One Region of Space, 2015, estimated at $4000-6000, sold at $46080
Lot 145, Andreas Feininger, Port of New York, East River, 1946, estimated at $800-1200, sold at $6144
Lot 194, Helen Levitt, Selected Images of Children Playing (3 prints), c1940-1942/c1940s, estimated at $7000-10000, sold at $23040
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
