Paul Feeley Leads Rago Arts & Auction Center $752,200 'Post War & Contemporary Art' Auction in Lambertville

A work by Paul Feeley was the headline sale at Rago Arts & Auction Center 'Post War & Contemporary Art' auction on July 31 in Lambertville.

• The sale totaled $752,200, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 54 works sold totaling $752,200.
• Estimates totaled: $559,000 (low) and $826,000 (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 86% of the original 63 lots announced.

The star lot was: Paul Feeley, Untitled (1956), which sold for $75,600, 152% above its $30,000 low estimate. It has not been traded before.

The outperformer sold for 404% above its low estimate. Suda Yoshihiro, Rose (2003), sold for $25,200 ($5,000 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 25 works, or 46%, sold above their high estimate.
• 13 works, or 24%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 16 works, or 30%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

9 works were bought-in, including: Jim Lutes, The Spot (1989), estimated at $12,000 (low) to $18,000 (high).

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn

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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.