Mark Tansey Leads Christie's $66.53m 'Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale' in New York

A work by Mark Tansey was the headline sale at Christie's 'Post-War and Contemporary Art Day Sale' on May 15 in New York.

• The sale totaled $66.53m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 203 works sold totaling $66.53m.
• Estimates totaled: $56.14m (low) and $81.15m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 83% of the original 246 lots announced.

The star lot was: Mark Tansey, Study for "The Enunciation" (1992), which sold for $3.2m, 965% above its $300,000 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1789% above its low estimate. Darrel Austin, Night Ride (1973), sold for $18,900 ($1,000 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 102 works, or 50%, sold above their high estimate.
• 88 works, or 43%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 13 works, or 6%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

50 works were backed by guarantees, including: Joan Mitchell, Petit Matin (1982). It sold for $3.08m, 9% above its $2.8m low estimate.. It has not been traded before.

Works that did not sell

30 works were bought-in, including: Ed Ruscha, Bowling Ball, Olive (1969), estimated at $1.2m (low) to $1.8m (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

13 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Frank Stella, BAFQ (1965) estimated at $2m (low) to $3m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.