Felix Gonzalez-Torres Leads Christie's $34.36m 'The Rosa de la Cruz Collection Evening Sale' in New York

A work by Felix Gonzalez-Torres, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Christie's 'The Rosa de la Cruz Collection Evening Sale' on May 14 in New York.

• The sale totaled $34.36m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 25 works sold totaling $34.36m.
• Estimates totaled: $25.77m (low) and $37.92m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 96% of the original 26 lots announced.

The star lot was: Felix Gonzalez-Torres, "Untitled" (America #3) (1992), which sold for $13.63m, 70% above its $8m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 400% above its low estimate. Hernan Bas, Trying to fit in (2004), sold for $390,600 ($70,000 low estimate). The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded once in the past.

Also of note, Ana Mendieta, Silueta Works in Mexico, 1973-1977 (1991), sold for $277,200, a new auction record for the artist. It had a $50,000 low estimate and was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded twice in the past.

• 14 works, or 56%, sold above their high estimate.
• 9 works, or 36%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 2 works, or 8%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

25 works were backed by guarantees, including: Felix Gonzalez-Torres, "Untitled" (America #3) (1992). It sold for $13.63m, 70% above its $8m low estimate.. It has been traded once in the past.

Works that did not sell

0 works were bought-in.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Martin Kippenberger, Untitled (from the series Hand Painted Pictures) (1992) estimated at $2m (low) to $3m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.