Vaughn Spann Leads Phillips $1.35m 'Modern & Contemporary Art: Online Auction, New York'

A work by Vaughn Spann was the headline sale at Phillips 'Modern & Contemporary Art: Online Auction, New York' on October 3.

• The sale totaled $1.35m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 136 works sold totaling $1.35m.
• Estimates totaled: $1.3m (low) and $1.9m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 78% of the original 175 lots announced.

The star lot was: Vaughn Spann, Aurora (2022), which sold for $95,200, 217% above its $30,000 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 429% above its low estimate. Karel Appel, The Family (1989), sold for $63,500 ($12,000 low estimate). It has been traded twice in the past.

• 39 works, or 29%, sold above their high estimate.
• 51 works, or 38%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 46 works, or 34%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

38 works were bought-in, including: Richard Diebenkorn, Untitled (1962), estimated at $30,000 (low) to $40,000 (high). It has been traded 4 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Vik Muniz, George Stinney Jr. from the series Album (2015) estimated at $20,000 (low) to $30,000 (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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.