While a Rodney Graham print jumped to more than 3X its high estimate, that one bright spot wasn’t enough to fight back the tide of passes that diminished the results of the Photographs sale at Bonhams in New York earlier this week. A number of Paul Strand prints failed to find buyers, and with an overall Buy-In rate over 55%, the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $340K) fell far 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 | 88 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $803500 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $1112000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 38 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 50 |
| Buy In % | 56.82% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $341858 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 55 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 30 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 25 |
| Low Buy In % | 45.45% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $344000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $160395 |
| Mid Total Lots | 31 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 8 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 23 |
| Mid Buy In % | 74.19% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $638000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $181463 |
| Total High Lots | 2 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 0 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 2 |
| High Buy In % | 100.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $130000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $0 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 28, Paul Strand, Central Park, New York, 1915, estimated at $50000-70000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 65, Rodney Graham, Typewriter with Flour, 2003, estimated at $12000-15000, sold at $46995 (image above, via Bonhams.)
81.58% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were 2 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (image above, via Bonhams):
Lot 36, Weegee, Group of 4 Marilyn Monroe Photographs, 1950, estimated at $4000-6000, sold at $22950
Lot 65, Rodney Graham, Typewriter with Flour, 2003, estimated at $12000-15000, sold at $46995
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
