Press | Phillips

Phillips’ Evening Sale of 20th Century & Contemporary Art Achieves £24.8 Million, Marking a 17% Increase Over the Previous Year

London, 15 April 2021

Sale Total: £24,828,250 / $34,245,605 / €28,587,247

Lots Sold: 30 | Lots Offered: 33

Sold by Lot: 91% | Sold by Value: 94%

©Thomas De Cruz Media: Haydon Perrior

Olivia Thornton, Head of 20th Century & Contemporary Art, Europe, said “We are thrilled with tonight’s result of £24.8 million, exceeding last year’s total by 17%. Our purpose-built digital saleroom in London brought us ever-closer to our growing community of collectors, with phone banks livestreamed from London, Hong Kong and New York. As we continue to showcase exceptional works from the 20th and 21st centuries, we took great pride in offering Jean Dubuffet’s La féconde journée from his Théâtres de mémoire series, which sold for over double the high estimate. Modern highlights included Alberto Giacometti’s Nu debout II bronze sculpture, which sold for £1.8 million after a seven-minute global bidding war. Curating a sale which includes some of the most exciting international names working today is a hallmark of Phillips’ strategy, and the auction opened with deep bidding for the front run of highly sought-after names. We established a world auction record for Tunji Adeniyi-Jones and an exceptional price for Lina Iris Viktor, who made her auction debut tonight. It was a joy to be able to open our doors on Berkeley Square for a public viewing of the pre-sale exhibition, and the overall sale result sends a message of strength to the market. We look forward to our Hong Kong and New York auctions in June.”

Top Ten Lots

Lot	Description	Estimate	Price Achieved
11	Jean Dubuffet, La féconde journée, 16 May 1976	£1,500,000 – 2,000,000	£4,378,500 $6,039,265/€5,041,405
13	Frank Stella, Scramble: Ascending Spectrum / Ascending Green Values, 1977	£2,000,000 – 3,000,000	£2,866,000 $3,953,074/€3,299,912
15	Mark Rothko, Untitled (Black Blue Painting), 1968	£2,500,000 – 3,500,000	£2,866,000 $3,953,074/€3,299,912
21	Banksy, Gas Mask Boy, 2009	£1,800,00 – 2,500,000	£2,200,500 $3,035,150/€2,533,656
10	Alberto Giacometti, Nu debout II, 1953	£800,000 – 1,200,000	£1,813,300 $2,501,085/€2,087,834
9	Matthew Wong, Two Women, 2017	£350,000 – 450,000	£954,200 $1,316,128/€1,098,666
14	El Anatsui, Plot a Plan IV, 2007	£650,000 – 850,000	£942,100 $1,299,439/€1,084,734
17	Andy Warhol, One Grey / Black Marilyn (Reversal Series) II-50-160, circa 1979-1986	£700,000 – 900,000	£748,500 $1,032,406/€861,823
25	Ed Ruscha, Oxides, 1971	£300,000 – 400,000	£748,500 $1,032,406/€861,823
26	Mark Tansey, Study for Nocturne, 1998	£600,000 – 800,000	£748,500 $1,032,406/€861,823

New Auction Records

Lot

Description

Estimate

Price Achieved

Tunji Adeniyi-Jones, Love Ritual, 2019

£30,00 – 40,000

£151,200

$208,550/€174,092

*previous record price: $163,800 set in 2020

ABOUT PHILLIPS

Phillips is a leading global platform for buying and selling 20th and 21st century art and design. With dedicated expertise in the areas of 20th Century and Contemporary Art, Design, Photographs, Editions, Watches, and Jewelry, Phillips offers professional services and advice on all aspects of collecting. Auctions and exhibitions are held at salerooms in New York, London, Geneva, and Hong Kong, while clients are further served through representative offices based throughout Europe, the United States and Asia. Phillips also offers an online auction platform accessible anywhere in the world. In addition to providing selling and buying opportunities through auction, Phillips brokers private sales and offers assistance with appraisals, valuations, and other financial services.

Visit www.phillips.com for further information.

*Estimates do not include buyer’s premium. Prices Achieved include the buyer's premium and are reported net of applicable fees.

Phillips is not responsible for typographical errors or omissions.

PRESS CONTACTS:

LONDON - Katie Carder, Head of Press, Europe kcarder@phillips.com +44 20 7901 7938

PHILLIPS NEW YORK - 450 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10022

PHILLIPS LONDON - 30 Berkeley Square, London, W1J 6EX

PHILLIPS HONG KONG - 14/F St. George’s Building, 2 Ice House Street, Central Hong Kong

PHILLIPS GENEVA - Rue de la Confédération, 7 Geneva 1204

VISIT US AT: www.phillips.com