Ed Ruscha Leads Christie's $30.47m 'Post-War to Present' Auction in New York

A work by Ed Ruscha, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Christie's 'Post-War to Present' auction on October 1 in New York.

• The sale totaled $30.47m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 209 works sold totaling $30.47m.
• Estimates totaled: $29.35m (low) and $43.22m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 71% of the original 293 lots announced.

The star lot was: Ed Ruscha, Untitled (2015), which sold for $2.59m, 29% above its $2m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 530% above its low estimate. Lois Dodd, Reflection of the Barn (1971), sold for $378,000 ($60,000 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 78 works, or 37%, sold above their high estimate.
• 85 works, or 41%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 46 works, or 22%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

46 works were backed by guarantees, including: Gerhard Richter, Abstraktes Bild (1990). It sold for $2.05m, 2% above its $2m low estimate.. It has been traded 3 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

77 works were bought-in, including: Shara Hughes, Let's Stay In the Dark on This One (2017), estimated at $400,000 (low) to $600,000 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

7 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Jonas Wood, BW Parrot Pattern (2012) estimated at $300,000 (low) to $500,000 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.