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PHILLIPS de PURY & COMPANY’S LONDON CONTEMPORARY ART EVENING AUCTION TOTALS £23,376,400/$36,233,420 SURPASSING PRE-SALE HIGH ESTIMATE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

London – 28 May 2012 - Phillips de Pury & Company’s Contemporary Art Evening auction totaled £23,376,400/$36,233,420, selling 98% by value and 86% by lot.

Tonight, Phillips de Pury & Company’s Evening auction totaled over its high estimate; the only auction house to do so in the present season. The top lot of the auction was Jean-Michel Basquiat’s seminal painting Irony of Negro Policeman selling for £8,161,250/$12,649,938, above its pre-sale estimate.

There was competitive bidding for lot 8, the collaboration between Warhol and Basquiat, fittingly sold in the London Olympic year. A world record was achieved for this work at £6,761,250/$10,479,938 beating its previous record held by Phillips de Pury since May 2011.

"We are thrilled with tonight’s results which demonstrate that works of rarity and of high quality like Basquiat’s Irony of Negro Policeman, continue to attract strong bidding and excellent results. The Basquiat/Warhol collaboration realised a spectacular price and world record." Michael McGinnis, Senior Director and Worldwide Head, Contemporary Art.

TOP TEN LOTS
12 JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT, Irony of Negro Policeman, £8,161,250/$12,649,938
8 ANDY WARHOL & JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT, Olympics, £6,761,250/$10,479,938
19 ANDY WARHOL, Diamond dust shoes, £1,105,250/$1,713,138
11 ANDY WARHOL, Princess Diana, £993,250/$1,539,538
9 ANDY WARHOL, Gun, £802,850/$1,244,418
15 MIQUEL BARCELÓ, De Mars, £713,250/$1,105,538
13 RUDOLF STINGEL, Untitled, £668,450/$1,036,098
6 RICHARD PRINCE, Untitled (cowboys), £601,250/$931,938
10 GLENN BROWN, Kinder Transport, £481,250/$745,938
7 JOHN CHAMBERLAIN, Opera Chocolates, £421,250/$652,938

ARTIST WORLD RECORDS
8 ANDY WARHOL & JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT, Olympics, £6,761,250/$10,479,938
3 WADE GUYTON, U Sculpture (v.5), £193,250/$299,538 (For a sculpture)

Images available on request

PHILLIPS de PURY & COMPANY:
As the only international auction house to concentrate exclusively on contemporary culture, Phillips de Pury & Company has established a commanding position in the sale of Contemporary Art, Design, Photographs, Editions and Jewelry. Through the passionate dedication of its team of specialists, Phillips de Pury & Company has garnered an unparalleled wealth of knowledge of emerging market trends. For more information, please visit: phillipsdepury.com.

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Contacts:

Fiona McGovern
Communications and Marketing
fmcgovern@phillipsdepury.com
+ 44 20 7318 4010

Alex Godwin-Brown
Communications and Marketing Manager
agodwin-brown@phillipsdepury.com
+ 44 20 7318 4036

CONTACT

Tiana Webb-Evans
Director of Communications, New York
twebbevans@phillips.com
+1 212 940 1300

Alex Godwin-Brown
Communications and Marketing Manager, London
agodwin-brown@phillips.com
+ 44 20 7318 4010

Fiona McGovern
Communications and Marketing, London
fmcgovern@phillips.com
+ 44 20 7318 4010

Cecile Demtchenko
Communications, Paris
cdemtchenko@phillips.com
+ 33 1 42 78 67 77

Alexander Blanar
Press, Moscow
ablanar@phillips.com
+ 7 903 285 82 32