Jackson Pollock Leads Phillips $54.14m 'Modern & Contemporary Art Evening Sale' in New York

A work by Jackson Pollock, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Phillips 'Modern & Contemporary Art Evening Sale' on November 19 in New York.

• The sale totaled $54.14m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 25 works sold totaling $54.14m.
• Estimates totaled: $51.04m (low) and $75.08m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 76% of the original 33 lots announced.

The star lot was: Jackson Pollock, Untitled (1948), which sold for $15.34m. Estimates were undisclosed. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 3 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 535% above its low estimate. Sandy Calder, Reclining Bride (1948), sold for $317,500 ($50,000 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 9 works, or 38%, sold above their high estimate.
• 12 works, or 50%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 3 works, or 12%, sold below their low estimate.
• 1 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

10 works were backed by guarantees, including: Cy Twombly, Crimes of Passion I (1960). It sold for $6.11m, 22% above its $5m low estimate.. It has been traded 9 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

5 works were bought-in, including: Jean-Michel Basquiat, Self-Portrait (1983), estimated at $10m (low) to $15m (high). It has been traded 7 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

3 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Ed Ruscha, Isle of Fear (1987) estimated at $1.5m (low) to $2m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.