Picasso's Two Women on the Beach Leads Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr $208,000 'Picassomania' Auction

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Picasso's Two Women on the Beach Leads Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr $208,000 'Picassomania' Auction

3 min read  ·  18 Oct 2024

Two Women on the Beach by Pablo Picasso sold for $16,700.
Image courtesy of Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr

Two Women on the Beach by Pablo Picasso sold for $16,700. Image courtesy of Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr

Pablo Picasso's Two Women on the Beach was the headline sale at Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr 'Picassomania' auction on October 16.

  • The sale totaled $208,000 (EUR191,300), falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

  • 39 works sold totaling $208,000.
  • Estimates totaled: $212,400 (low) and $307,600 (high), excluding premiums.
  • The sell-through rate was 60% of the original 65 lots announced.

The star lot was: Pablo Picasso, Two Women on the Beach (1956), which sold for $16,700, 27% above its $13,200 low estimate.

The outperformer sold for 344% above its low estimate. Pablo Picasso, Colombe Volant (à l'Arc-en-ciel) (1952), sold for $9,746 ($2,193 low estimate).

Breakdown of results against auction house estimates that are disclosed

Breakdown of results against auction house estimates that are disclosed

  • 18 works, or 46%, sold above their high estimate.
  • 21 works, or 54%, 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

23 works were bought-in, including: Pablo Picasso, Untitled (Self-portrait) (1971), estimated at $7,674 (low) to $11,000 (high). It has been traded 3 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

3 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Pablo Picasso, Four Women on the Run, Ovid's Metamorphoses (1931) estimated at $7,674 (low) to $11,000 (high).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. Estimates, sale prices and totals are converted into US dollars. 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.