Results: Victorian & Edwardian Sales

Last week both Christie's and Sotheby's held Victorian and Edwardian sales. Sotheby's sold $7.1 million worth of art, although they did not post specific results for lots offered/sold etc. Christie's did post results, selling $5.57 million, offering 89 lots and selling 56, for a 63% buy through rate.

As witnessed in the recent Old Master sales and noted here on the AW Blog, higher quality art is typically selling at or above the catalog estimates, while the lower quality (at least by auction estimates and $$$) is not doing nearly as well.

The Economist recently published a review of the Victorian sales, and confirms the point of view that the upper end of the market is driving the sales results, while the middle market languishes.

The Economist states

Mr Mason, who has seen recessions come and go in the 53 year he has been in the business, said afterwards: “Prices today reflect what is happening out there. People are discounting the coming inflation and buying quality. They know that inflation has always been the art dealer’s friend.”

Buyers in every sector of the art market, from Chinese porcelain to Old Masters, now seem to follow a pattern. They are happy to pay over the odds for top-ranking pictures, but leave the rest untouched. Nearly 40% of the lots in Sotheby’s sale were bought in. Its success lay in the high prices achieved for those that sold, half of which were bid up beyond their high estimate. Some pieces went for as much as four times what the auction house had predicted.

 To read the Economist article, click HERE.