George Condo Leads Phillips $10m 'Modern & Contemporary Art: Evening & Day Sale' in Hong Kong

A work by George Condo, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Phillips 'Modern & Contemporary Art: Evening & Day Sale' on May 27 in Hong Kong.

• The sale totaled $10.04m (HKD78.73m), meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 92 works sold totaling $10.04m.
• Estimates totaled: $9.16m (low) and $14.2m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 86% of the original 107 lots announced.

The star lot was: George Condo, Blues In F (2021), which sold for $1.76m, 14% above its $1.53m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 364% above its low estimate. Antony Gormley, Peckham Bollards (Peg, Snowman, Penis and Oval) (2021), sold for $89,100 ($19,200 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 30 works, or 33%, sold above their high estimate.
• 55 works, or 60%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 7 works, or 8%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

2 works were backed by guarantees, including: George Condo, Blues In F (2021). It sold for $1.76m, 14% above its $1.53m low estimate.. It has been traded twice in the past.

Works that did not sell

14 works were bought-in, including: Anish Kapoor, Untitled (Organic Green / Apple Red) (2015), estimated at $447,600 (low) to $703,400 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Refik Anadol, Winds of Yawanawa #882 (Undated) estimated at $30,700 (low) to $44,800 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.