Yoshitomo Nara Leads Sotheby's $80.99m 'Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction' in Hong Kong

A work by Yoshitomo Nara was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Modern & Contemporary Evening Auction' on April 5 in Hong Kong.

• The sale totaled $80.99m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 40 works sold totaling $80.99m.
• Estimates totaled: $74.82m (low) and $107.3m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 85% of the original 47 lots announced.

The star lot was: Yoshitomo Nara, *I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight * (2017), which sold for $12.26m, 19% above its $10.23m low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 150% above its low estimate. Zenzaburo Kojima, *Roses in Choson dynasty porcelain * (1960), sold for $97,300 ($38,300 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 13 works, or 32%, sold above their high estimate.
• 22 works, or 55%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 5 works, or 12%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

2 works were backed by guarantees, including: Pablo Picasso, *Le Peintre * (1963). It sold for $10.06m, 19% above its $8.44m low estimate.. It has been traded 3 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

1 work was bought-in: Chu Teh-chun, No. 213 213 (1965), estimated at $1.92m (low) to $3.2m (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

6 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Wang Huaiqing, Gold stone (1998) estimated at $4.09m (low) to $5.11m (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.