A small treasure trove of prints by Edward Weston and Imogen Cunningham showed up at auction at John Moran in California last week, giving collectors a rare chance at some early 20th century Modernist gems. The results were generally solid, with a Cunningham print taking the top lot honors near $300K and several Weston prints topping $100K; the archive of Weston scholar Amy Conger was also up for sale, finding a buyer well above its modest estimate range. When the dust settled, the overall Buy-In rate for the sale came in under 20%, with the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $1.25M) falling near the top end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 43 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $798400 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $1372900 |
| Total Lots Sold | 35 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 8 |
| Buy In % | 18.60% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $1244727 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High price range definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 25 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 21 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 4 |
| Low Buy In % | 16.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $90900 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $109030 |
| Mid Total Lots | 10 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 7 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 3 |
| Mid Buy In % | 30.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $192000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $132398 |
| Total High Lots | 8 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 7 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 1 |
| High Buy In % | 12.50% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $1090000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $1003300 |
The top lot by High estimate was tied between four lots, each estimated at $100000-200000: lot 9, Edward Weston, Palma Cuernavaca, Mexico, 1924; lot 10, Edward Weston, Cuernavaca, 1925; lot 12, Edward Weston, Untitled [Nude], 1923; and lot 15, Imogen Cunningham, Two Callas, 1925-1929. The Cunningham print was the top outcome of the sale at $292100 (image above, via Moran), while the first Weston palm failed to sell, the second Weston palm sold at $215900, and the Weston nude sold at $114300.
65.71% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 6 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate)(images above via Moran):
Lot 2, Edward Weston, Enrique, 1919, estimated at $1000-1500, sold at $6985
Lot 4, Edward Weston, Prologue To A Sad Spring, 1920, estimated at $60000-80000, sold at $215900
Lot 16, Imogen Cunningham, Rubber Plant 3, c1929, estimated at $3000-5000, sold at $31750
Lot 18, Imogen Cunningham, Leaf Pattern, 1929/c1950s, estimated at $1000-1500, sold at $3810
Lot 25, Edward Weston, Portraits Of Enrique (Enrica) Jackson, 1916-1919, estimated at $4000-6000, sold at $15240
Lot 43, Dr. Amy Conger’s Research Files On Edward Weston (25 boxes), estimated at $1000-2000, sold at $10795
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
