Jean-Paul Riopelle Leads Sotheby's $7.77m 'Art Moderne et Contemporain Evening Auction' in Paris

A work by Jean-Paul Riopelle was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Art Moderne et Contemporain Evening Auction' on December 6 in Paris.

• The sale totaled $7.77m, falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 16 works sold totaling $7.77m.
• Estimates totaled: $11.32m (low) and $16.16m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 67% of the original 24 lots announced.

The star lot was: Jean-Paul Riopelle, Composition ciérrée (1951), which sold for $2.93m, 48% above its $1.98m low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 175% above its low estimate. Albert Oehlen, Treppenhaus Spezial (1984), sold for $822,700 ($274,400 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 7 works, or 44%, sold above their high estimate.
• 9 works, or 56%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 0 works, or 0%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

6 works were bought-in, including: Jindrich Styrsky, Trauma of Birth (1936), estimated at $3.84m (low) to $5.49m (high). It has been traded twice in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

2 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Damien Hirst, Purity (2020) estimated at $439,000 (low) to $658,500 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.