Barbara Kruger Leads Christie's Online $1.74m 'Contemporary Edition' Auction

A work by Barbara Kruger was the headline sale at Christie's Online 'Contemporary Edition' auction on February 26.

• The sale totaled $1.74m, exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 150 works sold totaling $1.74m.
• Estimates totaled: $1.12m (low) and $1.69m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 88% of the original 171 lots announced.

The star lot was: Barbara Kruger, Untitled (We will no longer be seen and not heard) (1985), which sold for $100,800, 152% above its $40,000 low estimate.

The outperformer sold for 1223% above its low estimate. Louise Nevelson, Night Blossom (1973), sold for $52,900 ($4,000 low estimate).

• 90 works, or 60%, sold above their high estimate.
• 41 works, or 27%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 19 works, or 13%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

29 works were backed by guarantees, including: Jean-Michel Basquiat, Untitled (The Ligaments of the Elbow and Superior Radio Ulnar Joints), from Anatomy (1982). It sold for $25,200, 320% above its $6,000 low estimate..

Works that did not sell

21 works were bought-in, including: Julie Mehretu, Corner of Lake and Minnehaha (2022), estimated at $40,000 (low) to $60,000 (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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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