The 24th Photo Auction at OstLicht in Vienna last week suffered from weak price performance (or overly aggressive estimates). While the sell through was decent (with an overall Buy-In rate less than 30%), only 21% of the lots that sold found buyers in or above their estimate ranges. With no positive surprises to pick up the slack, the Total Sale Proceeds came in at roughly €525K, well below the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium, in this case, 20% for lots purchased by non-EU buyers):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 180 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | €708100 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | €840600 |
| Total Lots Sold | 128 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 52 |
| Buy In % | 28.89% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | €529500 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 160 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 108 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 52 |
| Low Buy In % | 32.50% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | €492600 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | €252900 |
| Mid Total Lots | 19 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 19 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 0 |
| Mid Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | €308000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | €245400 |
| Total High Lots | 1 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 1 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 0 |
| High Buy In % | 0.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | €40000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | €31200 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 94, Robert Frank, Candy Store, 86th Street, New York, 1955/1970s, estimated at €35000-40000. It was also the top outcome of the sale at €31200 (image above, via OstLicht).
Only 21.09% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were no positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate).
Complete lot by lot results can be found here.
