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Irving Penn: career timeline

American · 1917–2009 · Works grouped by the decade they were made (the cataloged date, or a date in the signature or title), not by sale date. 398 of 411 lots (97% of works) have a usable creation date; the others are listed at the end by the decade they were sold. Each work is shown once, even when it sold more than once.

Irving Penn: works at auction by decade the work was made. Each work counted once; medians use sold works only, in US dollars.
Decade madeWorksSoldMedian sold priceMain medium
1930s10—Photograph
1940s7256$21.4kSign upPhotograph
1950s8973$58kSign upPhotograph
1960s5949$24.1kSign upPhotograph
1970s7253$33.5kSign upPhotograph
1980s3827$25kSign upPhotograph
1990s3626$50.4kSign upPhotograph
2000s2522$33.3kSign upPhotograph

Where does mine fit?

Enter what you know about a work by Irving Penn to see the closest recorded works from the same period, with their auction results. These are past records only, not a valuation: condition, authenticity, provenance and the market all change what a work brings. For an auction estimate of your work, get a free auction estimate.

1930s 1 work

Sold
0 of 1
Median
—
Average
—
Typical size
9.5 × 13.5 in (25 × 34 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (1)
Subjects
—

1940s 72 works

Sold
56 of 72
Median
$21.4kSign up
Average
$34kSign up
Typical size
13.5 × 11.5 in (34 × 30 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (69), Print (other) (2), Other (1)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (8), Flowers & still life (4)
Show 12 more (1940s)

…and 48 more works from this group in the full results list.

1950s 89 works

Sold
73 of 89
Median
$58kSign up
Average
$75.9kSign up
Typical size
16.5 × 14.5 in (42 × 37 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (89)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (12), Rivers & marshes (4), Markets & villages (1)
Show 12 more (1950s)

…and 65 more works from this group in the full results list.

1960s 59 works

Sold
49 of 59
Median
$24.1kSign up
Average
$40.3kSign up
Typical size
17 × 17.5 in (43 × 45 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (58), Other (1)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (8), Birds (3), Flowers & still life (1)
Show 12 more (1960s)

…and 35 more works from this group in the full results list.

1970s 72 works

Sold
53 of 72
Median
$33.5kSign up
Average
$43.2kSign up
Typical size
20 × 18.5 in (50 × 48 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (72)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (22), Abstract (3), Flowers & still life (1)
Show 12 more (1970s)

…and 48 more works from this group in the full results list.

1980s 38 works

Sold
27 of 38
Median
$25kSign up
Average
$53.6kSign up
Typical size
18.5 × 18.5 in (47 × 47 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (37), Print (other) (1)
Subjects
Flowers & still life (4), Figures & portraits (4), Palms (1)
Show 12 more (1980s)

…and 14 more works from this group in the full results list.

1990s 36 works

Sold
26 of 36
Median
$50.4kSign up
Average
$84.3kSign up
Typical size
17 × 18.5 in (43 × 47 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (36)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (3), Rivers & marshes (1)
Show 12 more (1990s)

…and 12 more works from this group in the full results list.

2000s 25 works

Sold
22 of 25
Median
$33.3kSign up
Average
$42.3kSign up
Typical size
19 × 19 in (48 × 49 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (24), Print (other) (1)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (2), Flowers & still life (1)
Show 12 more (2000s)

…and 1 more works from this group in the full results list.

Creation date not recorded

13 works have no cataloged or signed date. They are grouped here by the decade they were last sold, which says nothing about when they were made.

Undated, sold in the 2000s 1 work

Sold
1 of 1
Median
$16.6kSign up
Average
$16.6kSign up
Typical size
15.5 × 15.5 in (40 × 40 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (1)
Subjects
—

Undated, sold in the 2010s 3 works

Sold
3 of 3
Median
$18.8kSign up
Average
$18.3kSign up
Typical size
14 × 12.5 in (36 × 31 cm)
Mediums
Other (2), Photograph (1)
Subjects
—

Undated, sold in the 2020s 9 works

Sold
6 of 9
Median
$4.5kSign up
Average
$11.4kSign up
Typical size
10.5 × 11.5 in (27 × 30 cm)
Mediums
Photograph (8), Other (1)
Subjects
—
Show 3 more (2020s)

Medians and averages count sold works only (each work's most recent sale), in US dollars at the sale-date rate. Works cataloged as “attributed to”, “circle of” or similar are left out. All Irving Penn auction results →