The photographic results from the Post-War to Present and Post-War to Present Online sales at Christie’s in London last week were largely uneventful. A Wolfgang Tillmans abstraction took the top lot honors, and with an overall Buy-In rate for photography above 27% and just one positive surprise, the Total Sales Proceeds for photography (of roughly £790K) came in just above 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 | 33 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £747000 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £1091000 |
| Total Lots Sold | 24 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 9 |
| Buy In % | 27.27% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £791280 |
Here is the breakdown (using our usual Low, Mid, and High price tier definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 11 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 8 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 3 |
| Low Buy In % | 27.27% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £71000 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £42210 |
| Mid Total Lots | 15 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 9 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 6 |
| Mid Buy In % | 40.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £310000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £218610 |
| Total High Lots | 7 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 6 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 1 |
| High Buy In % | 14.29% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £710000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £530460 |
The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 23, Wolfgang Tillmans, Freischwimmer 103, 2004, estimated at £120000-180000; it was also the top outcome of the sales at £201600 (image above, via Christie’s).
66.67% of the photo lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there was just 1 positive surprise in the sales (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above, via Christie’s):
Lot 21, Wolfgang Tillmans, Kate McQueen, 1996/2005, estimated at £25000-35000, sold at £75600
Complete lot by lot results can be found here (Post-War to Present) and here (Post-War to Present Online).
