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Friday, December 14, 2012

News from Sotheby's: The Highest Ever Total For A Private Collection Of Photographs Sold At Auction

Today at Sotheby’s, the sale A Show Of Hands: Photographs from The Collection of Henry Buhl concluded, bringing a total of $12,318,704, exceeding the pre-sale estimate of $8.1/12.2 million. The total is the third highest for a single-owner collection of photographs and the highest ever for a private collection of photographs. Following today’s result, all of the seven highest single-owner auctions in this category have been held at Sotheby’s. These include Important Photographs from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, including Works from The Gilman Paper Company Collection in 2006, which holds the record for an institutional photographs collection; and Photographs from The Polaroid Collection, which realized the highest total for a corporate collection of photographs in 2010.



Denise Bethel, Head of Sotheby’s Photographs Department commented: “The exceptional result of this sale is a testament to the skill and discernment of Henry Buhl – a visionary collector and philanthropist. Bidders from around the world competed fiercely for the very best examples of classic images from the first half of the 20th century, with pieces by Herbert Bayer, László Moholy-Nagy, and Man Ray selling for multiples of their high estimates. A Show Of Hands: Photographs from The Collection of Henry Buhl now stands among the landmark single-owner auctions in this field, with the $12.3 million total the highest ever for a private collection of photographs sold at auction. ”




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