Andy Warhol Leads Sotheby's $63.75m 'Contemporary Day Auction' in New York

A work by Andy Warhol was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Contemporary Day Auction' on November 21 in New York.

• The sale totaled $63.75m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 247 works sold totaling $63.75m.
• Estimates totaled: $57.89m (low) and $85.27m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 79% of the original 314 lots announced.

The star lot was: Andy Warhol, Endangered Species (1983), which sold for $4.32m, 116% above its $2m low estimate.

The outperformer sold for 2000% above its low estimate. John Ritchie, Faceted Figure (1981), sold for $42,000 ($2,000 low estimate). It has been traded 4 times in the past.

• 113 works, or 46%, sold above their high estimate.
• 98 works, or 40%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 33 works, or 13%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

31 works were backed by guarantees, including: Keith Haring, Untitled (Still Alive in ’85) (1985). It sold for $900,000, 80% above its $500,000 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

Works that did not sell

39 works were bought-in, including: Christopher Wool, Untitled (2015), estimated at $1m (low) to $1.5m (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

28 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Yayoi Kusama, Abode of Love (2015) estimated at $1.5m (low) to $2.5m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.