It was generally a flat outing at the Photographs sale at Christie’s last week. The top lot Robert Mapplethorpe print failed to sell, giving way to a Hiroshi Sugimoto seascape for the top lot honors. The overall Buy-In rate came in just under 28%, and with just a few positive surprises, the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $2.06M) struggled to reach 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 | 166 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $2371000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $3479000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 120 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 46 |
| Buy In % | 27.71% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $2061952 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 71 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 54 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 17 |
| Low Buy In % | 23.94% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $447000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $318720 |
| Mid Total Lots | 85 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 58 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 27 |
| Mid Buy In % | 31.76% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $1882000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $1063552 |
| Total High Lots | 10 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 8 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 2 |
| High Buy In % | 20.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $1150000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $679680 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 234, Robert Mapplethorpe, Man in Polyester Suit, 1980, estimated at $200000-300000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 202, Hiroshi Sugimoto, North Atlantic Ocean, Cape Breton Island, 1996, estimated at $60000-80000, sold at $140800 (image above, via Christie’s.)
64.17% 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 Christie’s):
Lot 208, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Henry VIII, 2000, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $102400
Lot 262, Ansel Adams, Shadow Lake, c1920s, estimated at $2000-3000, sold at $8320
Lot 263, Ansel Adams, Tenaya Lake, c1920s, estimated at $2000-3000, sold at $15360
Lot 264, Ansel Adams, Mirror Lake, c1920s, estimated at $2000-3000, sold at $19200
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
