First results for Warhol Foundation sell-off

Christie’s inaugural sale of works from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts made $17m last month, selling 91% by lot and 82% by value. The auction was split into three parts: photography, paintings and prints. The photographs sold 97% by value, making $1.2m against presale estimates of $910,000 to $1.3m. Photo-booth works were the least popular, with most coming in below estimate or passing, but stitched silver-prints were sought after, including Poster, Gay Pride ’82, around 1982, which sold for $64,900 (est $25,000-$30,000). The prices achieved for Polaroids of celebrities depended on their subject: the singer Carly Simon ranked low on the list, with her 1970s portrait selling for $3,750 (est $6,000-$8,000), but a 1977 picture of a handsome Dennis Hopper sold for $30,000 (est $8,000-$12,000). Coolest in class, though, was the maestro himself. Warhol’s Self-portrait in Fright Wig (left), 1986, sold for $50,000 (est 12,000-$18,000). C.B.