Alex Katz Leads Sotheby's, Online $1.5m 'Art Without Boundaries: The Abrams Family Collection | Online Sale'

A work by Alex Katz was the headline sale at Sotheby's, Online 'Art Without Boundaries: The Abrams Family Collection | Online Sale' on September 30.

• The sale totaled $1.5m, exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 64 works sold totaling $1.5m.
• Estimates totaled: $934,800 (low) and $1.32m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 97% of the original 66 lots announced.

The star lot was: Alex Katz, Joe 1 (1966), which sold for $132,000, 340% above its $30,000 low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 3800% above its low estimate. Mario Yrisarry, Untitled (1971), sold for $78,000 ($2,000 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 30 works, or 47%, sold above their high estimate.
• 18 works, or 28%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 16 works, or 25%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

1 work was bought-in: Claudio Bravo, The Enigma (1966), estimated at $30,000 (low) to $40,000 (high). It has been traded 4 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Frank Stella, Moultonboro (1966) estimated at $25,000 (low) to $35,000 (high).

Terms and definitions

All results include the fees and premiums added to the price of a work of art when the auctioneer's hammer falls. Sale prices are compared to the auction house’s low estimate, which do not include premiums.

Guarantees: Sometimes an auction house guarantees to pay a seller for a work, regardless of whether the bidding reaches the reserve price, a figure that is typically confidential.

Bought-in: If there are no bids for a work, or if bidding falls short of the reserve price, the lot is unsold or “bought-in”.

Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.

Premiums: Typically a sliding-scale of charges paid in addition to the hammer price by the buyer, plus any other fees.