Andy Warhol Leads Christie's $64.05m 'Post-War and Contemporary Day Sale' in New York

A work by Andy Warhol, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Christie's 'Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale' on November 22 in New York.

• The sale totaled $64.05m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 185 works sold totaling $64.05m.
• Estimates totaled: $55.52m (low) and $81.92m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 80% of the original 231 lots announced.

The star lot was: Andy Warhol, Flowers (1964), which sold for $2.47m, 105% above its $1.2m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 8 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 656% above its low estimate. Maarten Baas, Real Time Sweepers' Mantel clock (2019), sold for $151,200 ($20,000 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 92 works, or 50%, sold above their high estimate.
• 77 works, or 42%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 16 works, or 9%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

44 works were backed by guarantees, including: Thomas Hart Benton, Current River, Missouri Ozarks (1961). It sold for $2.35m, 56% above its $1.5m low estimate.. It has been traded 5 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

36 works were bought-in, including: Andy Warhol, Jackie (1964), estimated at $1m (low) to $1.5m (high). It has been traded 3 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

10 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Adolph Gottlieb, Excalibur #2 (1963) estimated at $800,000 (low) to $1.2m (high).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. 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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.