Ansel Adams Leads Bonhams $630,800 'Photographs' Auction

A work by Ansel Adams was the headline sale at Bonhams 'Photographs' auction on April 3.

• The sale totaled $630,800, falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 113 works sold totaling $630,800.
• Estimates totaled: $901,100 (low) and $1.33m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 67% of the original 169 lots announced.

The star lot was: Ansel Adams, Tetons and Snake River (Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming) (Undated), which sold for $46,100, 130% above its $20,000 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 360% above its low estimate. Hiroshi Hamaya, Lagoon Fishing: Hachirogata, Akita, Japan (1955), sold for $4,608 ($1,000 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 24 works, or 21%, sold above their high estimate.
• 67 works, or 59%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 22 works, or 19%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

56 works were bought-in, including: Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Untitled (Photogram) (1939), estimated at $70,000 (low) to $100,000 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn

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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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