Results: Chrsitie's on a Roll

Wednesday evening Christies New York held its Post War and Contemporary Sale. Results were strong, as they were for the impressionist modern sale of last week. The Christie's sale are a stark contrast from both the Sotheby's Contemporary and Impressionist/Modern sales held earlier this week and last week. It will be interesting to track the comparison and review the rationale for the success and Christie's sales and the lower performance by Sotheby's in these two important sales categories.

The Christie's PW/Contemporary sale offered 54 lots with 49 selling, for a buy through rate of over 90%. The sale grossed $93.7 million including buyers premium, with the average lot selling for $1.9 million. The sale estimate range was $71.5 million to $104.5 million. The estimates, for the most part were on target, coming toward the higher end of the estimates. The top lot was David Hockney's Beverly Hills Housewife which sold for $7.92 million, including premium (see image).

The Wall Street Journal reported Christie's crowded salesroom at Rockefeller Center did rekindle a measure of optimism in the art world. That's partly thanks to dealers bidding in force for their own artists and bargain hunters who chased a few works just over their low estimates and occasionally much higher. Buyers are no longer hesitant to drop $1 million on a painting – 30 works in this sale passed that mark-yet only four went on to top $5 million, down from 18 at last spring's sale.

otheby's muted sale had unnerved Christie's, and specialists said they spent much of the day convincing sellers to slash their minimum asking prices. In the end, Christie's didn't need to bother because it had tied its sale's fate to the coveted estate of Los Angeles collector Betty Freeman. Ms. Freeman was an early champion of artists such as David Hockney and Sam Francis, and her group of 19 works fetched a combined $31.6 million. (The group was priced to sell for up to $37 million.)

To read the WSJ review of the sale, click HERE.