What We Learned About Photography at Auction in 2019

Another year of photography auctions has passed and though reports have suggested a downturn in the art market it seems photography is defying the trend. A total of over $67 million was realised from the 25 photography auctions that took place in 2019 – that’s over $19 million more than the 25 auctions that took place the year prior.

It isn’t just the combined worth of last year’s sales that is giving photography specialists a moment of optimism, there were also a number of auction records broken throughout the auction calendar that underpin this theory. Several photographers reached world auction records including Tina Modotti and El Lissitzky – whose print Self-Portrait (’The Constructor’) entered the top 50 Most Expensive Photographs Sold At Auction. There was another world record for Helmut Newton who entered the list for the first time last year and out-performed himself this year with the most expensive photograph of the year: Sie Kommen, Paris (Dressed and Naked) sold at Phillips for over $1.8 million.

Reports suggest a downturn in the art market but it seems photography is defying the trend

All of these auctions and their results are the subject of the Photography at Auction Digest, volume 2 now available to download or as a paperback. The book details the various highs and lows of the photography auction world over the last 12 months, records the most expensive lots from each auction, explores data trends and insights and, of course, publishes the definitive list of the Top 50 Most Expensive Photographs to ever sell at auction. 

Get your copy on Amazon under Photography at Auction Digest either as a Kindle download or as a physical paperback copy. Profits from sales go towards the upkeep of photographyatauction.com