Man Ray

American · 1890–1976 · Painter, Printmaker

Man Ray was an American-born, French-naturalized visual artist who spent most of his career in Paris. He was a significant contributor to the Dada and Surrealist movements,… (Wikipedia)

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647lots offered2001–2026years recorded86%sold (476)$2.2kSign up free to seemedian price

3 works by Man Ray with an auction history (offered more than once) →

6 works by Man Ray coming up at auction · bid with the house ↓

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Reclining Nude with Satin SheetPhillips · Apr 2015$329,000≈ £222,854≈ €305,904Sign up to see
RayographPhillips · Oct 2017$300,000≈ £226,655≈ €255,254Sign up to see
Silent HarpPhillips · Nov 2025$187,050≈ £142,939≈ €162,370Sign up to see

Man Ray’s highest prices recorded at auction, ranked in US dollars at each sale-date exchange rate and shown in the currency of the sale (with the buyer’s premium where the house publishes it).

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557 results · page 7 of 14

Le Violon d'Ingres, 1924
Photograph
OstLicht Photo Auction · Apr 16, 2021 · Lot 52
€750≈ $899≈ £651HammerSign up free to seeEst. €1,000–1,400View at OstLicht Photo Auction ↗
Les Mystères du Château de Dé, 1927
Photograph
6 x 7 7/8 in. (15.2 x 20 cm)
Phillips · Apr 8, 2021 · Lot 206
$8,190≈ £5,952≈ €6,898Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $7,000–9,000View at Phillips ↗
Valeska Gert, Paris, 1925
Photograph
10 1/2 x 8 in. (26.7 x 20.3 cm)
Phillips · Apr 8, 2021 · Lot 207
$13,860≈ £10,073≈ €11,674Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $12,000–18,000View at Phillips ↗
Portrait of Ruth Ford, circa 1945
Photograph
9 1/2 x 7 5/8 in. (24.1 x 19.4 cm)
Phillips · Apr 8, 2021 · Lot 244
$5,040≈ £3,663≈ €4,245Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $5,000–7,000View at Phillips ↗
Cadeau
Sculpture
16 × 10 × 8,5 cm
Capitolium Art · Mar 16, 2021 · Lot 539
€756≈ $902≈ £650Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. €300–500View at Capitolium Art ↗
Le Témoin from the Ultramobile series, 1971
Screenprint
16¼ h x 59½ w x 27 d in (41 x 151 x 69 cm)
Rago Auctions · Mar 3, 2021 · Lot 333
$3,750≈ £2,688≈ €3,113Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $4,000–View at Rago Auctions ↗
tapestry / wall hanging
Toomey & Co. · Feb 25, 2021 · Lot 200
$1,063≈ £751≈ €870Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $800–View at Toomey & Co. ↗
Cadeau, 1921, 1921
Sculpture · ed. 3901/5000
160 x 100 x 100mm
Art+Object · Feb 23, 2021 · Lot 145
NZ$3,603≈ $2,638≈ £1,875≈ €2,172Price realizedSign up free to seeView at Art+Object ↗
Les Anatomes
Etching · ed. 59/100
670 x 510mm
Art+Object · Feb 23, 2021 · Lot 146
NZ$2,642≈ $1,934≈ £1,375≈ €1,593Price realizedSign up free to seeView at Art+Object ↗
Cadeau
cast iron, steel tacks
6½ h x 4 w x 3¾ d in (17 x 10 x 10 cm)
Rago Auctions · Feb 17, 2021 · Lot 250
$1,500≈ £1,082≈ €1,244Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,200–View at Rago Auctions ↗

Also offered, result not published (91)

Lots by Man Ray that were offered at auction where the house did not publish whether they sold. Not counted in any statistics.

Man Ray paintings (15)Man Ray acrylic paintings (5)Man Ray mixed media (5)Man Ray works on paper (32)Man Ray watercolors (4)Man Ray drawings (18)Man Ray prints (204)Man Ray etchings (48)Man Ray engravings (3)Man Ray aquatints (8)Man Ray lithographs (72)Man Ray screenprints (23)Man Ray multiples (14)Man Ray photographs (155)Man Ray sculpture (44)

Man Ray signature

163 catalogued lots by Man Ray record a signature line. The most common placement is lower right (45% of lots that state a placement). Most often: signed.

Placement

lower right15
in the margin5
in the plate4
on the reverse3
lower left3
on the base2

Form

signed106
signed in pencil18
signed and dated16
monogrammed12
initialled11

Signed, titled and dated "man Ray 1943 “Silent Harp”" on the reverse — Silent Harp, Phillips, Nov 21, 2025
Signed and dated 'Man Ray 52' lower left — Composition, Phillips, Jun 27, 2024
Edition: 13/30; signed lower right: Man Ray; numbered lower left: XIII/XXX; inscribed verso: Portrait imaginaire [illeg.] de Sade — Marquis de Sade 1970, Menzies, Aug 30, 2023

Man Ray signature: all forms and examples →

About Man Ray

Man Ray was an American-born, French-naturalized visual artist who spent most of his career in Paris. He was a significant contributor to the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal. He produced major works in a variety of media but considered himself a painter above all. He was a photography innovator as well as a fashion and portrait photographer, and is noted for his work with photograms, which he called "rayographs" in reference to himself.

From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

In museum collections

Landscape (Paysage Fauve), 1913
Smithsonian American Art Museum · Public domain
Man Ray 1914, 1914
National Galleries Scotland · Public domain

Biography and museum images →