Softness in the highest priced lots dampened the results at Phillip’s recent Photographs sale in New York. The overall Buy-In rate for the sale hovered at roughly a third, but the top lots passed at a rate of 50%. A Hannah Wilke self-portrait was the top outcome in the sale, and with just 4 positive surprises (the most notable being a Roy DeCarava print that seemingly reached for the price anchor point of the current show at David Zwirner), the Total Sale Proceeds came in at just above $3.5M, decently 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 | 247 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $4099200 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $6025300 |
| Total Lots Sold | 164 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 83 |
| Buy In % | 33.60% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $3534000 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 94 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 67 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 27 |
| Low Buy In % | 28.72% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $685300 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $530250 |
| Mid Total Lots | 131 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 86 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 45 |
| Mid Buy In % | 34.35% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $3110000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $1888750 |
| Total High Lots | 22 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 11 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 11 |
| High Buy In % | 50.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $2230000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $1115000 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 199, Robert Mapplethorpe, Lily, 1987, estimated at $200000-300000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 111, Hannah Wilke, S.O.S. Starifaction Object Series (Performalist Self Portrait with Les Wollam), 1974, estimated at $180000-280000, sold at $225000 (image above via Phillips).
98.78% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 4 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Phillips):
Lot 68, Robert Frank, Trolley, New Orleans, 1955/c1986, estimated at $50000-70000, sold at $150000
Lot 72, Roy DeCarava, Hallway, New York, 1953/later, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $72500
Lot 213, Philip-Lorca diCorcia, New York, 1997, estimated at $8000-12000, sold at $27500
Lot 246, Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison, Selected images, 2002-2005, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $16250
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
