David Hockney Leads Bonhams $518,600 'Hot Off The Press' Auction in London

A work by David Hockney was the headline sale at Bonhams 'Hot Off The Press' auction on May 1 in London.

• The sale totaled $518,600, falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 83 works sold totaling $518,600.
• Estimates totaled: $680,000 (low) and $995,100 (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 55% of the original 152 lots announced.

The star lot was: David Hockney, Pool Made with Paper and Blue Ink for Book (1980), which sold for $55,900, 49% above its $37,300 low estimate.

The outperformer sold for 500% above its low estimate. Paula Rego, Après la fête II (2003), sold for $6,064 ($870 low estimate).

• 31 works, or 37%, sold above their high estimate.
• 44 works, or 53%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 8 works, or 10%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

69 works were bought-in, including: Jeff Koons, Balloon Animals Collector's Set (2017), estimated at $62,200 (low) to $87,000 (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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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