Joan Mitchell Leads Christie's $34.96m 'Post-War to Present' Auction in New York

A work by Joan Mitchell was the headline sale at Christie's 'Post-War to Present' auction on September 30 in New York.

• The sale totaled $34.96m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 223 works sold totaling $34.96m.
• Estimates totaled: $29.41m (low) and $43.11m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 75% of the original 296 lots announced.

The star lot was: Joan Mitchell, Peinture II (1964), which sold for $2.76m, 10% above its $2.5m low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1328% above its low estimate. Isamu Noguchi, Untitled, costume design for "King Lear," dir. George Devine (1955), sold for $11,400 ($800 low estimate). The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded once in the past.

• 112 works, or 50%, sold above their high estimate.
• 82 works, or 37%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 29 works, or 13%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

15 works were backed by guarantees, including: Tomas Saraceno, Stellar (2009). It sold for $63,500, 27% above its $50,000 low estimate.. It has been traded once in the past.

Works that did not sell

72 works were bought-in, including: Richard Serra, Tracks #1 (2007), estimated at $300,000 (low) to $500,000 (high). It has been traded twice in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Etel Adnan, Untitled (2014) estimated at $80,000 (low) to $120,000 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.