August was a quiet month for auctions in New York, as it always is, and European houses focused on historical genres at lower price points, as usual, and so it was Australia’s time to shine. In Sydney, Smith and Singer (formerly Sotheby’s Australia) sold more than half of the 10 priciest lots of the month, via its summer sale of Australian art. Meanwhile Loïc Gouzer, the Christie’s veteran who launched his own digital platform, “Fair Warning,” several years ago, took the top slot with a rare work by David Hammons.

Read on for the list of top-selling works for the month of August.

1. David Hammons, Untitled (circa 1975)

David Hammons, Untitled (circa 1975). Image courtesy Fair Warning.

Estimate: $800,000 to $1.2 million

Final Price: $1.3 million

Where & When: Fair Warning, online, August 22, 2024

2. Sidney Nolan, Ned Kelly: Crossing Bridge (1964)

Sidney Nolan, Ned Kelly: Crossing Bridge (1964). Image via Smith and Singer.

Estimate: $673,000 to $1 million (AUD$1 million to AUD$1.5 million

Final Price: $673,000 (AUD$ 1 million)

Where & When: Smith and Singer, Sydney, August 21, 2024

3. Frederick Ronald Williams, Acacia Sapling (1977)

Frederik Ronald Williams, Acacia Sapling (1977). Image via Smith and Singer, Sydney.

Estimate: $270,000 to $404,000 (AUD$400 to AUD$600,000)

Final Price: $648,036 (AUD$981,818)

Where & When: Smith and Singer, Sydney, August 21, 2024

4. Nicholas Chevalier, Lake Colac and the Warrior’s Hill, from Corangamorah (1863)

Nicholas Chevalier, Lake Colac and the Warrior’s Hill, from Corangamorah (1863). Image via Smith and Singer, Sydney.

Estimate: $539,000 to $808,000 (AUD$800,000 to AUD$1.2 million)

Final Price: $648,036 (AUD$981,818)

Where & When: Smith and Singer, Sydney, August 21, 2024

5. Agnes Pelton, Flowering (1929)

Agnes Pelton, Flowering (1929). Image courtesy of John Moran Auctioneers and Appraisers, Monrovia, Calif.

Estimate: $300,000 to $500,000

Final Price: $571,500

Where & When: John Moran Auctions, Monrovia, Calif., August 13, 2024

6. Frederick Ronald Williams, Summer Snow at Perisher (1976)

Frederick Ronald Williams, Summer Snow at Perisher (1976). Image via Smith and Singer

Estimate: $337,000 to $473,000 (AUD$500,000 to AUD$700,000)

Final Price: $526,530 (AUD$793,000)

Where & When: Smith and Singer, Sydney, August 21, 2024

7. Conrad Martens, Sydney From Lewis’s Ground (1840)

Conrad Martens, Sydney from Lewis’s Ground (1840)

Estimate: $404,000 to $539,000 (AUD$600,000 to AUD$800,000)

Final Price: $526,530 (AUD$600,000)

Where & When: Smith and Singer, Sydney, August 21, 2024

8. Franz Arthur Bischoff, Roses

Franz Arthur Bischoff, Roses (circa 1935). Image courtesy Bonhams Los Angeles.

Estimate: $300,000 to $500,000

Final Price: $445,000

Where & When: Bonhams, Los Angeles, August 6, 2024

9. Brett Whitely, Green Heron (1983, cast later)

Estimate: $337,000 to $471,000 (AUD$500,000 to AUD$700,000)

Final Price: $412,750 (AUD$613,000)

Where & When: Smith and Singer, Sydney, August 21, 2024

10. Don Binney, Malay Dove, Wooden Mansions (1998-99)

Don Binney, Malay Dove, Wooden Mansions (1998-99). Image via Webb Auctions, Auckland, New Zealand

Estimate: $311,000 to $467,000 (NZ$500,000 to NZ$750,000)

Final Price:  $350,000 (NZ$561,650)

Where & When: Webb Auctions, Auckland, New Zealand, August 26, 2024