Auction PR Publicity Announcements News and Information
Auction PR Publicity Announcements News and Information

Phillips de Pury & Company’s Photographs and The Face of Modernism. A Private West Coast Collection Takes $6,101,400

Phillips de Pury & Company’s Photographs and The Face of Modernism: A Private West Coast Collection at 450 Park Avenue, sold 90% by value and 81% by lot totaling $6,101,400.


Sally Mann Candy Cigarette, 1989. Sold for $266,500. Image courtesy of Phillips de Pury & Company

World auction records were set for photographs across the classic and contemporary spectrum, indicating the expansive breadth of interest in the medium.

Competitive bidding on works by Peter Beard, Edward Weston, Walker Evans, Richard Avedon, Irving Penn and Andreas Gursky reflected collectors’ eagerness for exemplary works by masters of 20th-century photography. Additionally, successful results were achieved for artists making their world auction debut, including Yuval Yairi, Lee Yanor, Yulia Lebedeva, Sergey Shestakov and Chris Heads.

“We are thrilled to have been able to tap into the pulse of the contemporary photography art market with strong results achieved for master artists such as Cindy Sherman, Andreas Gursky, Francesca Woodman and Sally Mann. The continuous demand for the best in classic photography was demonstrated by the competitive bidding for the Brassaï, Walker Evans and the Edward Weston.” Vanessa Kramer, Worldwide Director, Photographs.

Artists Records: • Lot 146 Sally Mann, Candy Cigarette, 1989 , $266,500 • Lot 141 Francesca Woodman, Untitled, Rome, 1977 , $170,500 • Lot 86 Melvin Sokolsky, Paris (12 works) , 1963, $92,500 • Lot 1 Brassaï, Le Pont du Carrousel, 1932 , $86,500 • Lot 169 Philip-Lorca DiCorcia, Eddie Anderson, 21, Houston, TX , $20, 1991-1992, $80,500 • Lot 161 Andrew Bush, Untitled (Envelopes) (in 7 parts) , $10,000 • Lot 20 Carl Van Vechten, Joe Louis, 1937 , $9,000 • Lot 27 Eleanor Parke Custis, Penguins Three, 1939 , $7,500 Top Ten Lots: • Lot 142 Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Still #49, 1979 , $626,500 • Lot 187 Andreas Gursky, Taipai, 1999 , $302,500 • Lot 146 Sally Mann, Candy Cigarette, 1989 , $266,500 • Lot 91 Irving Penn, Woman with Roses on Her Arm, Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn, 1950, $230,500 • Lot 12 Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O’Keeffe, 1918 , $182,500 • Lot 141 Francesca Woodman, Untitled, Rome, 1977-1978 , $170,500 • Lot 145 Cindy Sherman, Untitled # 403, 2000 , $146,500 • Lot 15 Edward Weston, Portrait of a Woman, 1916 , $134,500 • Lot 175 Gilbert & George, Tonguers, 1992 , $98,500 • Lot 101 Richard Avedon, Andy Warhol and members of The Factory, New York, October 30, 1975 , $96,100