Christie's Contemporary Edition: New York Auction Totals $2.2m

A work by Andy Warhol was the headline sale at Christie's 'Contemporary Edition: New York' auction on February 17-26 in New York.

• The sale totaled $2.2m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 167 works sold totaling $2.2m.
• Estimates totaled: $1.6m (low) and $2.39m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 89% of the original 187 lots announced.

The star lot was: Andy Warhol, Mick Jagger: one print (1975), which sold for $95,200, 58% above its $60,000 low estimate.

The outperformer sold for 1805% above its low estimate. Cy Twombly, Suite Libre, from The Gaeta Set (1993), sold for $19,100 ($1,000 low estimate).

• 78 works, or 47%, sold above their high estimate.
• 58 works, or 35%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 31 works, or 19%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

18 works were backed by guarantees, including: Roy Lichtenstein, Imperfect Print for B.A.M., from The Brooklyn Academy of Music 125th Anniversary Portfolio (1987). It sold for $24,100, 20% above its $20,000 low estimate..

Works that did not sell

20 works were bought-in, including: Julian Opie, New York Couples (2019), estimated at $60,000 (low) to $80,000 (high).

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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