Sotheby's Modern British & Irish Art Day Auction Totals $3.6m

A work by David Bowie was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Modern British & Irish Art Day Auction' on October 15 in London.

• The sale totaled $3.6m (GBP2.71m), meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 85 works sold totaling $3.6m.
• Estimates totaled: $2.86m (low) and $4.31m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 74% of the original 115 lots announced.

The star lot was: David Bowie, Self Portrait (1996), which sold for $543,700, 1072% above its $46,400 low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1072% above its low estimate. David Bowie, Self Portrait (1996), sold for $543,700 ($46,400 low estimate). It has been traded twice in the past.

• 35 works, or 41%, sold above their high estimate.
• 44 works, or 52%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 6 works, or 7%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

2 works were backed by guarantees, including: Keith Vaughan, Blue Landscape (1958). It sold for $42,500, 60% above its $26,500 low estimate. It has not been traded before.

Works that did not sell

30 works were bought-in, including: Ivon Hitchens, Figure, Courtyard – Greenleaves (1935), estimated at $79,500 (low) to $106,000 (high). It has been traded twice in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn

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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.