Alma Woodsey Thomas Leads Sotheby's $19.64m Contemporary Curated Auction

A work by Alma Woodsey Thomas was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Contemporary Curated' auction on February 25 in New York.

• The sale totaled $19.64m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 92 works sold totaling $19.64m.
• Estimates totaled: $19.12m (low) and $27.25m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 77% of the original 119 lots announced.

The star lot was: Alma Woodsey Thomas, Snoopy Sees Sunrise on Earth (1970), which sold for $3.78m, 152% above its $1.5m low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1265% above its low estimate. Gerhard Richter, Untitled (5.2.89) (1989), sold for $409,600 ($30,000 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 39 works, or 42%, sold above their high estimate.
• 35 works, or 38%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 18 works, or 20%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

2 works were backed by guarantees, including: Lee Bul, Autopoiesis (2007). It sold for $38,400, 4% below its $40,000 low estimate.. It has been traded 3 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

21 works were bought-in, including: Jack Whitten, Xzee I (1977), estimated at $600,000 (low) to $800,000 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

6 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Donald Judd, Untitled (1988) estimated at $2m (low) to $3m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.