Auction Results: Photographs, March 23, 2013 @Heritage Beverly Hills

The results of the various owner Photographs sale at Heritage last week were generally weak. While the overall Buy-In rate was under 20%, 57% of the lots that sold found buyers at prices below the low estimate, likely the result of both lesser known material and a thin bidding base. With that as a backdrop, it shouldn't be a surprise that the Total Sale Proceeds fell under the range.

The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):

Total Lots: 121
Pre Sale Low Total Estimate: $497300
Pre Sale High Total Estimate: $777500
Total Lots Sold: 100
Total Lots Bought In: 21
Buy In %: 17.36%
Total Sale Proceeds: $375457

Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post, here):

Low Total Lots: 106
Low Sold: 89
Low Bought In: 17
Buy In %: 16.04%
Total Low Estimate: $394500
Total Low Sold: $218894

Mid Total Lots: 14
Mid Sold: 11
Mid Bought In: 3
Buy In %: 21.43%
Total Mid Estimate: $303000
Total Mid Sold: $156563

High Total Lots: 1
High Sold: 0
High Bought In: 1
Buy In %: 100.00%
Total High Estimate: $80000
Total High Sold: $0

The top lot by High estimate is lot 74032, Irving Penn, Picasso, Cannes, 1957/before 1965, estimated at $60000-80000; it did not sell. The top photography outcome of the sale was lot 74084, Ansel Adams, Portfolio V, 1936-1960/1979, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $43750.

Only 43.00% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range. There were a total of three surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate):

Lot 74103, Cindy Sherman, Untitled (Lucille Ball), 1975/2001, estimated at $4000-6000, sold at $23750 (image at right, top, via Heritage)
Lot 74111, Robert Mapplethorpe, Lady, Lisa Lyon, 1982, estimated at $600-800, sold at $1625 (image at right, bottom, via Heritage)
Lot 74115, Steven Meisel, Madonna Hitching, 1992/later, estimated at $3000-5000, sold at $10625 (image at right, middle, via Heritage)

Complete lot by lot results can be found here.

Heritage Auctions
9478 W. Olympic Boulevard
Beverly Hills, CA 90212

Auction: Photographs, March 23, 2013 @Heritage Beverly Hills

Heritage has a various owner Photographs sale scheduled for later this week in Beverly Hills. While there are a few top end lots on offer, most of the work for sale is in the lower price bracket, with many later prints and lesser known images to be looked through. Overall, there are a total of 121 photographs available, with a total High estimate of $777500.

Here's the statistical breakdown:

Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including $10000): 106
Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of Low lots): $394500

Total Mid Lots (high estimate between $10000 and $50000): 14
Total Mid Estimate: $303000

Total High Lots (high estimate above $50000): 1
Total High Estimate: $80000

The top lot by High estimate is lot 74032, Irving Penn, Picasso, Cannes, 1957/before 1965, at $60000-80000 (image at right, top, via Heritage).

Here's the complete list of photographers represented by three or more lots in the sale (with the number of lots in parentheses):

Peter Basch (6)
Ansel Adams (5)
Alfred Eisenstaedt (5)
Leonard Freed (5 )
Irving Penn (4)
Herb Ritts (4)
Jerry Uelsmann (4)
Berenice Abbott (3)
Andre Kertesz (3)
Helen Levitt (3)
Thomas Mangelsen (3)
Minor White (3 )
Francesca Woodman (3)

Other works of interest include Lot 74117, Justine Kurland, Kung Fu Fighters, 1999, estimated at $2000-4000 (image at right, bottom, via Heritage).

The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.

Photographs
March 23rd

Heritage Auctions
9478 W. Olympic Boulevard
Beverly Hills, CA 90212

Auction Results: New York Signature Vintage & Contemporary Photography, May 2, 2011 @Heritage

While Heritage is making consistent progress in drawing more higher value photography consigments and slowly raising its total proceeds in each succeeding season, it's hard to call outcomes like this one particularly successful by the normal measures we use. With more than 64% of the lots that sold selling below their estimate ranges and a Buy-In rate over 30%, it isn't much of a surprise that the Total Sale Proceeds missed the estimate range by a wide margin.

The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):

Total Lots: 188
Pre Sale Low Total Estimate: $966350
Pre Sale High Total Estimate: $1482000
Total Lots Sold: 130
Total Lots Bought In: 58
Buy In %: 30.85%
Total Sale Proceeds: $695825

Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post, here):

Low Total Lots: 168
Low Sold: 116
Low Bought In: 52
Buy In %: 30.95%
Total Low Estimate: $631000
Total Low Sold: $294305

Mid Total Lots: 16
Mid Sold: 12
Mid Bought In: 4
Buy In %: 25.00%
Total Mid Estimate: $406000
Total Mid Sold: $219283
.
High Total Lots: 4
High Sold: 2
High Bought In: 2
Buy In %: 50.00%
Total High Estimate: $445000
Total High Sold: $182238

The top lot by High estimate was lot 74083, Irving Penn, Harlequin Dress, Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn, 1950/1979, at $150000-250000; it was also the top outcome of the sale at $131450.
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A paltry 35.44% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above their estimate range. There were only two surprises in this sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate):

Lot 74045, Harold Roth, Williamsburg Bridge, 1947/1997 at $3585(image at right, top via Heritage)
Lot 74051, O. Winston Link, Birmingham Special, Rural Retreat, Virginia, 1957/1988, at $13145 (image at right, bottom, via Heritage)

Complete lot by lot results can be found here.
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Heritage Auctions
The Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion
2 East 79th Street
New York, NY 10075

Auction: New York Signature Vintage & Contemporary Photography, May 2, 2011 @Heritage

Heritage steps up next week with its various owner sale in New York, headlined by a few more high end lots than usual, but with plenty of later prints and lower priced work to sift through as well. Overall, there are a total of 188 photographs on offer, with a total High estimate of $1482000.

Here's the statistical breakdown:

Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including $10000): 168
Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of Low lots): $631000
.
Total Mid Lots (high estimate between $10000 and $50000): 16
Total Mid Estimate: $406000

Total High Lots (high estimate above $50000): 4
Total High Estimate: $445000
.

The top lot by High estimate is lot 74083, Irving Penn, Harlequin Dress, Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn, 1950/1979, at $150000-250000 (image at right, top, via Heritage).

Here's the complete list of photographers represented by four or more lots in the sale (with the number of lots in parentheses):

Berenice Abbott (12)
Ansel Adams (11)
Bill Owens (6)
Edward Weston (6)
Annie Leibovitz (5)
Irving Penn (5)
Sebastiao Salgado (5)
Mark Shaw (5)
Michael Kenna (4)
Jim Marshall (4)
Mark Seliger (4)
.

(Lot 74059, Edward Weston, Pepper (No. 14), 1929, at $50000-75000, image at right, middle, and lot 74096, Slim Aarons, Mrs. F.C. Winston Guest and Son, Villa Artemis, Palm Beach, 1955/Later, at $3500-5000, image at right bottom, both via Heritage.)
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The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.

New York Signature Vintage & Contemporary Photography Auction
May 2nd
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Heritage Auctions
The Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion
2 East 79th Street
New York, NY 10075

Auction Results: Signature Vintage & Contemporary Photography Auction, December 3, 2010 @Heritage New York

While Heritage was able to draw more consignment dollars to its recent photography sale than ever before, the auction house continues to suffer from poor outcomes. With more than 60% of the lots that sold selling below their estimate ranges and a Buy-In rate over 30%, it is no wonder the Total Sale Proceeds missed the estimate range by a wide margin.

The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):

Total Lots: 196
Pre Sale Low Total Estimate: $616650
Pre Sale High Total Estimate: $916800
Total Lots Sold: 132
Total Lots Bought In: 64
Buy In %: 32.65%
Total Sale Proceeds: $411281

Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post, here):
.
Low Total Lots: 187
Low Sold: 124
Low Bought In: 63
Buy In %: 33.69%
Total Low Estimate: $714300
Total Low Sold: $288494
.
Mid Total Lots: 9
Mid Sold: 8
Mid Bought In: 1
Buy In %: 11.11%
Total Mid Estimate: $202500
Total Mid Sold: $122786

High Total Lots: 0
High Sold: NA
High Bought In: NA
Buy In %: NA
Total High Estimate: $0
Total High Sold: NA

The top lot by High estimate is lot 74040, Ansel Adams, Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, 1941/1978, at $30000-50000; it was also the top outcome of the sale at $35850.

A troubling 62.88% of the lots that sold had proceeds below their estimate. There were a total of three surprises in this sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate):

Lot 74068, Garry Winogrand, JFK, Democratic National Convention, Los Angeles, 1960/1983, at $2629 (image at right, bottom via Heritage)
Lot 74133 Michael Kenna, Gondolas I, Venice, Italy, 1980/1981, at $4780 (image at right, middle, via Heritage)
Lot 74138, Ray Metzker, 86 GB-6, Colorado, from Earthly Delights, 1986, at $3346 (image at right, top, via Heritage)
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Complete lot by lot results can be found here.

Heritage Auctions
The Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion
2 East 79th Street
New York, NY 10075

Auction: Signature Vintage & Contemporary Photography Auction, December 3, 2010 @Heritage New York

Heritage's photography sale in New York later this week (online bidding is already open) is a selection of mostly lower priced material, all with starting bids at half the Low estimate. The most surprising find here is an instance of Lee Friedlander's 15 Photographs Portfolio from the early 1970s, which is being broken up and sold as individual images. All in, there are a total of 196 photography lots on offer, with a Total High Estimate of $916800.

Here's the breakdown:

Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including $10000): 187
Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of Low lots): $714300

Total Mid Lots (high estimate between $10000 and $50000): 9
Total Mid Estimate: $202500

Total High Lots (high estimate above $50000): 0
Total High Estimate: NA
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The top lot by High estimate is lot 74040, Ansel Adams, Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, 1941/1978, at $30000-50000.

Here is the list of the photographers who are represented by five or more lots in the sale (with the number of lots in parentheses):

Lee Friedlander (15)
Harold Edgerton (10)
Ansel Adams (9)
Eliot Porter (9)
Michael Kenna (7)
Sid Avery (6)
Hank O'Neal (6)
Dennis Hopper (5)
O. Winston Link (5)
.
(Lot 74022, Gyorgy Kepes, Untitled (Abstraction), 1953/1970s, at $2500-3500, at right, middle, lot 74038, William Garnett, Plowed Field, Arvin, California, 1951, 1993, at $6000-8000, at right, bottom, and lot 74095, Harold Edgerton, Bullet Through Candle Flame, 1973/1980, at $1000-2000, at right, top, all via Heritage.)
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The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.

Signature Vintage & Contemporary Photography Auction
December 3rd

Heritage Auctions
The Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion
2 East 79th Street
New York, NY 10075

Auction Results: Signature Fine Art Photography, June 9, 2010 @Heritage

Thanks to the Robert Mapplethorpe Calla Lily at right, the overall results of the recent Heritage various owner photographs sale in Dallas came out much better than they otherwise might have. Heritage continues to suffer from a large percentage of its lots (roughly two thirds in this case) selling below their estimate range. But with the help of the Mapplethorpe more than tripling its high estimate, the Total Sale Proceeds came in close to the bottom of the range.

The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):

Total Lots: 202
Pre Sale Low Total Estimate: $500000
Pre Sale High Total Estimate: $732400
Total Lots Sold: 137
Total Lots Bought In: 65
Buy In %: 32.18%
Total Sale Proceeds: $490237

Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post, here):

Low Total Lots: 190
Low Sold: 138
Low Bought In: 62
Buy In %: 32.63%
Total Low Estimate: $420400
Total Low Sold: $167322

Mid Total Lots: 11
Mid Sold: 8
Mid Bought In: 3
Buy In %: 27.27%
Total Mid Estimate: $262000
Total Mid Sold: $278103

High Total Lots: 1
High Sold: 1
High Bought In: 0
Buy In %: 0.00%
Total High Estimate: $50000
Total High Sold: $44813

The top lot by High estimate was lot 74167, Herb Ritts, Stephanie, Cindy, Christy, Tatjana, Naomi, Hollywood, 1989, at $30000-50000; it sold for $44813. The top outcome of the sale was lot 74132, Robert Mapplethorpe, Calla Lily, 1984, at $131450. (Image at right, top, via Heritage.)

A disappointing 62.77% of the lots that sold had proceeds below their estimate. There were a total of three surprises in this sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate):

Lot 74091, George Hurrell, Shannon Tweed, 1995, at $1135
Lot 74132, Robert Mapplethorpe, Calla Lily, 1984, at $131450
Lot 74146, Helmut Newton, Another World... of dressing, 1983, at $3107

Complete lot by lot results can be found here.

Heritage Auctions
Design District Annex
1518 Slocum Street
Dallas, TX 75207

Auction: Signature Fine Art Photography, June 9, 2010 @Heritage

Heritage's photography sale in Dallas later this week (online bidding is already open) is a selection of mostly lower priced material, all with starting bids at half the Low estimate. Ritts, Mapplethorpe, Penn, and Avedon are among the top lots. All in, there are a total of 202 photography lots on offer, with a Total High Estimate of $732400. (Catalog cover at right, via Heritage.)

Here's the breakdown:

Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including $10000): 190
Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of Low lots): $420400

Total Mid Lots (high estimate between $10000 and $50000): 11
Total Mid Estimate: $262000

Total High Lots (high estimate above $50000): 1
Total High Estimate: $50000

The top lot by High estimate is lot 74167, Herb Ritts, Stephanie, Cindy, Christy, Tatjana, Naomi, Hollywood, 1989, at $30000-50000. (Image at right, via Heritage.)

Here is the list of the photographers who are represented by three or more lots in the sale (with the number of lots in parentheses):

Michael Kenna (16)
George Hurrell (13)
Garry Winogrand (10)
Harry Callahan (9)
Alfred Eisenstaedt (6)
Jacques Lowe (6)
Hank O'Neal (6)
Bert Stern (6)
Horace Bristol (5)
Alfred Cheney Johnston (5)
Philippe Halsman (4)
Arthur Rothstein (4)
Bruce Barnbaum (3)
John Florea (3)
Robert Freeman (3)
Horst P. Horst (3)
Jacques Henri Lartigue (3)
Robert Mapplethorpe (3)
Helmut Newton (3)

The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.

Signature Fine Art Photography Auction
June 9th

Heritage Auctions
Design District Annex
1518 Slocum Street
Dallas, TX 75207

Auction Results: Signature Photography, November 19, 2009 @Heritage

The results of the recent Heritage various owner photographs sale in Dallas are a bit deceiving at first glance. With a Buy-In rate of less than 20%, things might seem to have gone pretty well. But a look at the Total Sale Proceeds tells a different story, the sum falling below the Total Low Estimate by a wide margin. The most telling data is found in the Above/In/Below statistics - nearly 75% of the lots that sold in this sale sold below their low estimate. Whether we attribute this to the estimates being too high, the material being too marginal, or the number of active buyers being too small, the results were less than inspiring.

The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):

Total Lots: 187
Pre Sale Low Total Estimate: $347600
Pre Sale High Total Estimate: $516100
Total Lots Sold: 151
Total Lots Bought In: 36
Buy In %: 19.25%
Total Sale Proceeds: $231455

Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post, here):

Low Total Lots: 184
Low Sold: 150
Low Bought In: 34
Buy In %: 18.48%
Total Low Estimate: $471100
Total Low Sold: $221298

Mid Total Lots: 3
Mid Sold: 1
Mid Bought In: 2
Buy In %: 66.67%
Total Mid Estimate: $45000
Total Mid Sold: $10158

High Total Lots: 0
High Sold: NA
High Bought In: NA
Buy In %: NA
Total High Estimate: $0
Total High Sold: NA

A disappointing 74.83% of the lots that sold had proceeds below their estimate. There were a total of four surprises in this sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate):

Lot 77020 Felice Beato, Peking, China, 1860, at $10755
Lot 77096 Annie Liebovitz, Clowns in New York, 1993, at $4780
Lot 77166 Jock Sturges, Nicole Euronat-Montalivet France, 1989, at $3346
Lot 77176 William Wegman, Reader, 1999, at $1076

The top lot by High estimate was lot 77075, Tom Kelley, Marilyn Monroe, 1949/Later, at $14000-18000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 77020, Felice Beato, Peking, China, 1860, at $10755.

Complete lot by lot results can be found here.

Heritage Auctions
Design District Annex
1518 Slocum Street
Dallas, TX 75207

Auction: Signature Photography, November 19, 2009 @Heritage

Heritage's photography sale in Dallas next week is a selection of mostly lower end material, all with starting bids at half the Low estimate. There are a total of 187 photography lots on offer, with a Total High Estimate of $516100. (Catalog cover at right, via Heritage.)

Here's the breakdown:

Total Low Lots (high estimate up to and including $10000): 184
Total Low Estimate (sum of high estimates of Low lots): $471100

Total Mid Lots (high estimate between $10000 and $50000): 3
Total Mid Estimate: $45000

Total High Lots (high estimate above $50000): 0
Total High Estimate: NA

The top lot by High estimate is lot 77075, Tom Kelley, Marilyn Monroe, 1949/Later, at $14000-18000.

Here is a short list of the photographers who are represented by three or more lots in the sale (with the number of lots in parentheses):

Michael Kenna (15)
Jim Marshall (10)
Anne Brigman (9)
Eliot Porter (8)
Berenice Abbott (5)
Ansel Adams (5)
Paul Caponigro (5)
Annie Leibovitz (5)
Jacques Lowe (5)
Barbara Morgan (4)
Hank O'Neal (4)
Jock Sturges (4)
Wynn Bullock (3)
Elliott Erwitt (3)
Andre Kertesz (3)
Brett Weston (3)

While not much caught our eye amid this less than inspiring bunch of lots, the best fit for our collection in this sale would be lot 77172, John Vanderpant, Castles at the Seashore, 1930s. (Image at right, bottom.)

The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.

Signature Photography Auction
November 19th

Heritage Auctions
Design District Annex
1518 Slocum Street
Dallas, TX 75207

Heritage Closes Photography Department

I first read about the news that Heritage Auction Galleries was shutting down its Photography department in Alex Novak's E-Photo Newsletter (here). I've since followed up with Lorraine Davis to get more details on the situation.

We covered Heritage's April sale (preview here and results here) and the results weren't pretty. While there was a decent mix of material on offer, the total proceeds were only just over $200K. If we back into the premium taken by the auction house on that sum, and match it against the likely costs of staff, promotion, and catalog production/mailing, it becomes clear that the math doesn't really work.

So the basic reason for the decision to close down the dedicated Photography department (after just two auctions) is that the sales just did so poorly; investment spending in a money losing department in this kind of economic climate is a tough sell. Photography will get folded back into the larger 20th Century/Fine Art auctions as appropriate. Lorraine will go back to her appraisal business, writing articles, and working on her revision of Lee Witkin's The Photograph Collector's Guide.

I think the real underlying issue here is that auction houses are trying to give liquidity to illiquid markets. To do so, matches between buyers and sellers must be found. It seems to me that the sellers were decently accounted for here; Lorraine did an adequate job of digging up material that would normally sell to someone at some price. The problem is that there were not enough buyers. Heritage's traditional customer base is collectibles (coins etc.), so their client list isn't a great fit for higher end fine art photography. Building a new list from scratch takes time and effort; the variety of buyers needs to be broad to cover all kinds of material.

It is a good reminder that the defensible advantage that Sotheby's and Christie's have is not only in their ability to get the best consignments, but their deep client lists, built over decades in the marketplace. These two feed on each other and are self reinforcing, making it tough going for new entrants.

Auction Results: Vintage & Contemporary Photography, April 18, 2009 @Heritage

The Photography sale at Heritage last week in Dallas was brutal evidence of just how soft the lower end of the market can be in this environment, especially when mid range collectors fail to show up for the more expensive lots. In general, the buying was soft all the way down to the $2000 minimum bid level, below which things seemed to sell more readily. More specifically, this is the first time since we have been covering auctions in detail that we have witnessed a complete washout: all 18 of the Mid range lots failed to sell (and there were no High end lots in the sale). 0 for 18 is a drubbing that isn't easily forgotten.

The summary statistics are below:

Total Lots: 293
Pre Sale Total Minimum Price: $648500

Total Lots Sold: 125
Total Lots Bought In: 168
Buy In %: 57.34%
Total Sale Proceeds: $203304

Here is the breakdown (using the Low, Mid, and High definitions from the preview post, here):

Low Total Lots: 275
Low Sold: 125
Low Bought In: 150
Buy In %: 54.55%
Total Low Minimum Price: $476500
Total Low Sold: $203304

Mid Total Lots: 18
Mid Sold: 0
Mid Bought In: 18
Buy In %: 100.00%
Total Mid Minimum Price: $181000
Total Mid Sold: $0

High Total Lots: 0
High Sold: NA
High Bought In: NA
Buy In %: NA
Total High Estimate: NA
Total High Sold: NA

Since we didn't have estimates to tally (given the way Heritage presented the information), we don't have any statistical data on percentages above, in and below the estimate range or on surprise lots. That said, the best outcome of the sale was lot 75028 Pierre Dubreuil, Black Cat Cigarettes, 1930, which sold for $15525 against a minimum bid of $6000.

Complete lot by lot results can be found here. Lots available for post auction purchase can be found here.

Heritage Auction Galleries
3500 Maple Avenue
17th Floor
Dallas, TX 75219

Auction: Vintage & Contemporary Photography, April 18, 2009 @Heritage

Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, TX, entered the photography auction market last December with its inaugural sale, and is following up that effort with a solid offering this spring. In a time when consignments are scarce, it is quite surprising to see a new entrant deliver a big catalog with 293 lots of decent work. Lorraine Davis is leading the photography department at Heritage, and it appears that they are taking dead aim at Swann Galleries and the lower end of what Sotheby's and Christie's used to take, scooping up a broad and eclectic mix of lower end lots.

The sale itself has some intriguing blocks of images: 47 lots of dance pictures by Barbara Morgan, 63 lots of Central European modernity (including several Kicken portfolios), 3 NASA multi-panel panoramas, and several strong works by Robert Frank. While there is virtually no 19th century material, and the contemporary work is pretty thin, the sale has plenty of 20th century imagery worth digging through.

Heritage has a few quirks in its process worth mentioning. First, the catalog doesn't have estimate ranges. Instead, "Minimum Bid" amounts are listed. These amount to the reserve price, and are often much lower than the normal price range for a specific image, sometimes set at zero (as an example, there are two Ed Ruscha images, recent prints of 1960s negatives, with a Gagosian provenance, with minimum bids of zero; it seems pretty unlikely that these will sell for fifty bucks each). While estimates are available from the department, there isn't any public signalling about where the images "ought" to sell. On the positive side, there isn't any subterfuge about the reserve, and no chandelier bids on behalf of the seller; if you bid the minimum and there are no other bids, you win. On the negative side, the buyer must do more homework to get comfortable about his/her bidding strategy (which he/she would likely have done anyway in most cases), assuming that the end price for many lots will have little or no relationship to the minimum bid price quoted.

The second quirk has to do with shipping. Heritage doesn't do its own shipping; all they do is connect a buyer with a list of third party shippers (the local UPS store etc.). Buyers have to contact the third party shipper, make arrangements/payment directly, and have the lot released from Heritage to the shipper for packing etc. From my perspective, this is a MAJOR negative. While most times this will work adequately, this set-up introduces the potential for significant additional hassle and screw ups, for which Heritage takes no responsibility. We will have to do meaningful extra work to bird dog the process, which we have no interest in doing. As such, we will certainly bid on less lots at Heritage until this changes. Only those lots which we are extremely interested in will merit this potential headache.

Given the lack of estimates, our usual statistical analysis can't be done as easily. As such, we've made a simple change: an $8000 minimum bid price will be the break point between Low and Mid (somewhat equivalent to our usual $10000 high estimate break point). The highest minimum price is $20000, which isn't close enough to our normal $50000 break point for High lots, so there are no High lots in this sale by these definitions. There are a total of 293 lots of offer, with a total minimum bid price of $648500. Here's the adjusted breakdown:

Total Low lots (minimum bid below $8000): 275

Total Low estimate (sum of minimum bids): $467500

Total Mid lots (minimum bid between $8000 and $40000): 18

Total Mid estimate: $181000

Total High lots (minimum bid above $40000): 0

Total High estimate: NA

For our particular collection, we liked the Margaret Bourke-White transmitting towers (lots 75024 and 75025), the Aaron Siskind wrought iron railing (lot 75026), the Ludwig Windstosser scaffolding (lot 75217), the Albert Renger-Patzsch tubes (lot 75230), and the Ernst Fuhrmann flowers (lots 75270 and 75276).

The lot by lot catalog can be found here.

Vintage & Contemporary Photography

April 18, 2009

Heritage Auction Galleries

3500 Maple Avenue

17th Floor

Dallas, TX 75219

Auctions: Heritage, Millon, and Bloomsbury

Here are three more upcoming photography auctions that are worth a look. We won't have time to do the usual thorough analysis of these sales, but wanted to provide links just the same:

Heritage Auctions
Vintage & Contemporary Photography
December 12

348 lots of photography.

Millon & Associes
Photographie Contemporaine
December 13

113 lots of contemporary photography in a sale also offering design/furniture.

Bloomsbury Auctions
20th Century Arts, New York
December 17

118 lots of photography in a sale also offering prints/multiples.