Yoshitomo Nara Leads Sotheby's $43.15m 'Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction' in Hong Kong

A work by Yoshitomo Nara, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction' on September 28-28 in Hong Kong.

• The sale totaled $43.15m (HKD335.7m), meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 38 works sold totaling $43.15m.
• Estimates totaled: $37.54m (low) and $55.65m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 84% of the original 45 lots announced.

The star lot was: Yoshitomo Nara, Can't Wait 'til the Night Comes (2012), which sold for $10.27m, 22% above its $8.36m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 3 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 302% above its low estimate. Christine Ay Tjoe, Large Space of Shoots #1 (2020), sold for $310,200 ($77,100 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 14 works, or 37%, sold above their high estimate.
• 20 works, or 53%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 4 works, or 11%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

8 works were backed by guarantees, including: Roy Lichtenstein, Vista with Bridge (1996). It sold for $3.97m, 10% above its $3.6m low estimate.. It has been traded once in the past.

Works that did not sell

2 works were bought-in, including: Rashid Johnson, Untitled Escape Collage (2017), estimated at $385,600 (low) to $514,200 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

5 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Zeng Fanzhi, Society No. 3 (2001) estimated at $1.8m (low) to $3.09m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.