Christie's Post-War to Present Auction Totals $28.48m

A work by Wayne Thiebaud was the headline sale at Christie's 'Post-War to Present' auction on October 1 in New York.

• The sale totaled $28.48m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 170 works sold totaling $28.48m.
• Estimates totaled: $26.92m (low) and $39.58m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 72% of the original 236 lots announced.

The star lot was: Wayne Thiebaud, Coastal Farms (1997), which sold for $1.86m, 131% above its $800,000 low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 437% above its low estimate. Rashid Johnson, Untitled Anxious Drawing (2018), sold for $53,800 ($10,000 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 68 works, or 40%, sold above their high estimate.
• 71 works, or 42%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 31 works, or 18%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

27 works were backed by guarantees, including: Donald Judd, Untitled, 1965 (1969). It sold for $1.31m, 30% above its $1m low estimate.. It has been traded once in the past.

Works that did not sell

59 works were bought-in, including: Ed Ruscha, Psycho Spaghetti Western #4 (2010), estimated at $600,000 (low) to $800,000 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

7 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Elizabeth Peyton, Liam (1996), estimated at $600,000 (low) to $800,000 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.