Carried by a Richard Prince cowboy which brought in more than half of the total photography proceeds, the results of Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening and Day sales last week in London just covered the pre-sale low estimate. While the overall Buy-In rate for photography was under 20%, with virtually no positive surprises, the few passes were enough to dampen the outcome.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 23 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £1538000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £2235000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 19 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 4 |
| Buy In % | 17.39% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £1619775 |
Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 0 |
| Low Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £3000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £6000 |
| Mid Total Lots | 6 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 6 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 0 |
| Mid Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £52000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £58125 |
| Total High Lots | 16 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 12 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 4 |
| High Buy In % | 25.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £2180000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £1555650 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 50, Richard Prince, Untitled (Cowboy), 2001, estimated at £700000-1000000 (image in preview post); it was also the top outcome of the two sales at £842500.
94.74% of the photo lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there was only 1 surprise in the two sales (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate):
Lot 195, Helmut Newton, Sumo, 1999, estimated at £2000-3000, sold at £6000 (image above, left, via Christie’s)
Complete lot by lot results can be found here (Evening) and here (Day).
The term ‘post-war’ is a bit depressing when you think about the reality.