David Hockney Leads Christie's $18.5m '20th Century Day Sale' in Hong Kong

A work by David Hockney was the headline sale at Christie's '20th Century Day Sale' on September 27 in Hong Kong.

• The sale totaled $18.5m (HKD144m), exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 78 works sold totaling $18.5m.
• Estimates totaled: $9.42m (low) and $14m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 96% of the original 81 lots announced.

The star lot was: David Hockney, The Twelfth V.N. Painting (1992), which sold for $3.51m, 82% above its $1.93m low estimate. It has been traded 7 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 610% above its low estimate. Pham Hau, Pagode du Tonkin (Pagoda of Tonkin) (1935), sold for $456,800 ($64,300 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 53 works, or 68%, sold above their high estimate.
• 24 works, or 31%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 1 works, or 1%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

2 works were backed by guarantees, including: J.M.W. Turner, The Grand Bridge at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire (1830). It sold for $375,300, 21% above its $308,500 low estimate.. It has been traded 9 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

1 work was bought-in: Sindutomo Sudjojono, Damai di bawah bukit (Peace under the Hill) (1971), estimated at $51,400 (low) to $77,100 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

2 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Park SeoBo, Ecriture No.10-79-81 (1979) estimated at $192,800 (low) to $321,400 (high).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. Estimates, sale prices and totals are converted into US dollars. 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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.