Christie's House Sale

Christie's may evoke images of $72 million Warhols and $88 million Klimts, but the auction house has some middle-market material on its sales lineup, too.

You'll find it in Christie's New York House Sales, which target buyers looking to decorate their homes in the broadest sense of the term by combining all of the home decorating categories — including fine art — into one catalogue-cum-magazine, a "magalogue." (The auction house offers similar sales in London and Paris.) Lots can be had for as little as $500, and some have no reserve. September's House Sale — they are monthly events — started today and included a Renoir etching with an estimate of $1,000 - $1,500 and a Takashi Murakami lithograph expected to fetch $800 - $1,200.*

"I would say, generally, that the paintings are chosen depending on condition, how well the artists are known on the market, and on track records in the past," Stefan Kist, head of the House Sales department, said.

The sales tend to include more unattributed works and artists who haven't been tested on the market. Add to this a smattering of lots with no minimum price and the chance that a prime piece will end up in a House Sale as part of a collection of less remarkable art, and not only are there bargains to be had, but also the opportunity to find a diamond in the rough.

But lots with relatively inexpensive estimates and no reserves can also work counterintuitively, attracting more interest, sparking a bidding war, and driving up the final hammer price. At this morning's session, the hammer came down on a landscape by German artist Fritz Ascher (top) at $40,000, more than five times its high estimate, and on a still life by Greek artist Thanos Tsingos (bottom) at $30,000, ten times its high estimate.

In this way, House Sales aren't so much about finding a deal as discovering an artist who may be on the rise.

Ascher hadn't been tested on the market before, Kist said, but after his performance today, Christie's will probably look at him for more important sales, too.

Photo Credits: Christie's Images Ltd. 2007

*UPDATE: The Renoir etching brought $1,320 and the Murakami lithograph, $1,560, both with buyer's premium.