Lucio Fontana Leads Sotheby's $10.65m 'Modern & Contemporary Art' Auction in Milan

A work by Lucio Fontana was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Modern & Contemporary Art' auction on April 12 in Milan.

• The sale totaled $10.65m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 48 works sold totaling $10.65m.
• Estimates totaled: $10.03m (low) and $14.49m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 79% of the original 61 lots announced.

The star lot was: Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale (1964), which sold for $1.47m, 13% above its $1.3m low estimate. It has been traded 3 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 350% above its low estimate. Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale (1963), sold for $149,200 ($32,500 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 26 works, or 54%, sold above their high estimate.
• 22 works, or 46%, 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

12 works were bought-in, including: Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale (1957), estimated at $433,400 (low) to $650,100 (high). It has been traded twice in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale, Attesa (1968) estimated at $1.08m (low) to $1.63m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.