ArtTactic reported some numbers on last week’s Contemporary art Evening sales showing that they came in on the high end of the estimate range at  “£193,899,000 (excluding buyer’s premium) against a pre-sale estimate of £163,755,000 to £208,535,000.”

Surprisingly, June 2012 still holds onto the title for the highest sale total for London in the category. But these 2014 numbers bested February  2013 by 35% and June 2013 by 42%, dramatic jumps by any measure.

But what may be the most interesting number to come from the week is the observation that the number of works declined by nearly 18% and the average price of the works shot up more than 64%:

With a smaller number of lots on offer this season (112 vs 136 in February 2013), the average auction price increased by 64.2%, from £1,054,081 to £1,731,226. The average was lifted by the top end of the market (lots above £1 million), which accounted for 85.4% of the overall sales result.

Auction Analysis: London Post-War and Contemporary Sales – Feb 2014