Christie's Impressionist and Modern Works on Paper Sale Totals $21.21m

A work by Pablo Picasso was the headline sale at Christie's 'Impressionist and Modern Works on Paper Sale' on May 19 in New York.

• The sale totaled $21.21m, exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 76 works sold totaling $21.21m.
• Estimates totaled: $9.58m (low) and $14.21m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 92% of the original 83 lots announced.

The star lot was: Pablo Picasso, Homme et femme (1964), which sold for $2.52m, 259% above its $700,000 low estimate. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 3265% above its low estimate. El Lissitzky, Preliminary Study for "Proun 2 D" (1920), sold for $673,100 ($20,000 low estimate). The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

• 50 works, or 66%, sold above their high estimate.
• 19 works, or 25%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 7 works, or 9%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

7 works were backed by guarantees, including: Fernand Leger, Composition mécanique (1921). It sold for $355,600, 77% above its $200,000 low estimate.. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

7 works were bought-in, including: Henri Matisse, Lorette assise (1917), estimated at $150,000 (low) to $250,000 (high). It has been traded twice 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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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