Scott Kahn Leads Rago Arts & Auction Center $1.48m 'Post War & Contemporary Art' Auction in Lambertville

A work by Scott Kahn was the headline sale at Rago Arts & Auction Center 'Post War & Contemporary Art' auction on September 24 in Lambertville.

• The sale totaled $1.48m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 42 works sold totaling $1.48m.
• Estimates totaled: $1.28m (low) and $1.97m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 79% of the original 53 lots announced.

The star lot was: Scott Kahn, Cedar Lake (1988), which sold for $252,000, 26% above its $200,000 low estimate. It has not been traded before.

The outperformer sold for 577% above its low estimate. Gerome Kamrowski, Lost Time (1942), sold for $54,200 ($8,000 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 11 works, or 26%, sold above their high estimate.
• 16 works, or 38%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 15 works, or 36%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

6 works were bought-in, including: Horace Clifford Westermann, Dust Pan (1975), estimated at $15,000 (low) to $20,000 (high). It has not been traded before.

Withdrawn before the sale

5 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Stik, Untitled (2010) estimated at $8,000 (low) to $12,000 (high).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. 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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.