Jean Dubuffet Leads Sotheby's, Online $3.66m 'Modern & Contemporary Discoveries' Auction

A work by Jean Dubuffet was the headline sale at Sotheby's, Online 'Modern & Contemporary Discoveries' auction on July 5.

• The sale totaled $3.66m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 116 works sold totaling $3.66m.
• Estimates totaled: $3.24m (low) and $4.7m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 79% of the original 146 lots announced.

The star lot was: Jean Dubuffet, Le château de bouteilles (1965), which sold for $493,400, 15% above its $428,100 low estimate. It has been traded 12 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 900% above its low estimate. KH, I Love You By Default (2000), sold for $1,169 ($107 low estimate). Owned by Christo and Jeanne-Claude, it has not been traded before.

• 62 works, or 53%, sold above their high estimate.
• 39 works, or 34%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 15 works, or 13%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

29 works were bought-in, including: Marc Chagall, Nu à la montagne (1967), estimated at $192,700 (low) to $267,600 (high). It has been traded 3 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Oscar Dominguez, Femme au téléphone (1943) estimated at $64,200 (low) to $85,600 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.