Lee Ufan Leads Sotheby's $14.42m 'Modern & Contemporary Day Auction' in Hong Kong

A work by Lee Ufan, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Modern & Contemporary Day Auction' on September 29-29 in Hong Kong.

• The sale totaled $14.42m (HKD112.2m), meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 90 works sold totaling $14.42m.
• Estimates totaled: $11.01m (low) and $18.26m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 82% of the original 110 lots announced.

The star lot was: Lee Ufan, Response (2021), which sold for $849,000, 65% above its $514,200 low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 781% above its low estimate. Zao Wou-ki, Ships (1951), sold for $204,100 ($23,100 low estimate). It has been traded twice in the past.

• 37 works, or 41%, sold above their high estimate.
• 45 works, or 50%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 8 works, or 9%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

7 works were backed by guarantees, including: Rashid Johnson, Untitled Anxious Men (2015). It sold for $391,800, 21% above its $321,400 low estimate.. It has been traded once in the past.

Works that did not sell

19 works were bought-in, including: Emily Mae Smith, Fruits of Labour (2018), estimated at $257,100 (low) to $385,700 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Mary Weatherford, November 9th (2017) estimated at $192,800 (low) to $257,100 (high).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. 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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.