They tried their best, but in the end the estimates were a little too high for certain works — some of which weren’t so great to start with. It will be interesting to see if the auction house can cover its $500 Million bet with the remaining works. Tad Smith (Sotheby’s president) was quoted in their post-sale press release as stating: “… with more then 400 works still to be sold over the next several months, we are on track to cover most of the total guarantee.” … from that, I would say he is not even sure the bet will pay off.
The low end of the presale estimate was $375M and the sale generated $377M, so without the buyer’s premium they fell short of their goal. Of the 77 works offered 69 sold (89.6%). Top lot was Modigliani’s Paulette Jourdain at $42.8M (est. $25-$35M). One positive thing is that in this instance, since Sotheby’s basically owned all the lots, the buyer’s premium is all theirs.
There is still a lot more art to be sold over the next two weeks … so hold on to your hats as this will be a wild ride.
For press coverage on last night’s sale you can see:
Robin Pogrebin’s full article HERE.
Katya Kazakina’s full article HERE.
