Vintage rarities helped buoy the results at Sotheby’s various owner Photographs sale in New York earlier this week. While the overall Buy-In rate was uncomfortably high (near 40%), prints from Rodchenko, Moholy-Nagy, Bragaglia, Peterhans, and others helped to fill in the gaps. When the tally was completed, the Total Sale Proceeds fell at the lower end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 129 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $2423500 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $3703500 |
| Total Lots Sold | 78 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 51 |
| Buy In % | 39.53% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $2764875 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 48 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 29 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 19 |
| Low Buy In % | 39.58% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $365500 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $250750 |
| Mid Total Lots | 69 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 41 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 28 |
| Mid Buy In % | 40.58% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $1678000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $973125 |
| Total High Lots | 12 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 8 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 4 |
| High Buy In % | 33.33% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $1660000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $1541000 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 131, Aleksandr Rodchenko, Girl with a Leica (Devushka s Leikoi), 1932-1934, estimated at $300000-500000; it was also the top outcome of the sale at $519000 (image above via Sotheby’s).
80.77% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 6 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Sotheby’s):
Lot 100, Heinrich Kühn, Untitled (Vase of Roses), 1915/1921, estimated at $6000-9000, sold at $20000
Lot 126, László Moholy-Nagy, Untitled (Photogram with circular shapes and diagonal line), c1923-1925, estimated at $120000-180000, sold at $447000
Lot 130, Anton Giulio Bragaglia and Arturo Bragaglia, Le Rose, 1913, estimated at $40000-60000, sold at $137500
Lot 134, Walter Peterhans, Portrait of E.F., 1929, estimated at $10000-15000, sold at $47500
Lot 149, O. Winston Link, Hot Shot Eastbound, Iaeger, West Virginia, 1957/1985, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $15000
Lot 183, Herb Ritts, Christy Turlington, 1988, estimated at $15000-25000, sold at $50000
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
