Jony Ive And Marc Newson's (RED) Charity Auction Exceeds Expectations
November 24, 2013
The (RED) Auction 2013 has just concluded at Sotheby's tonight. And most of the items at the charity auction fetched sums that far exceeded their estimates, especially the products that were selected and customized by Apple design chief Jony Ive along with renowned industrial engineer Marc Newson.
The auction featured a couple of special edition Apple products co-designed by Ive and Newson, namely, a red Mac Pro and a pair of solid rose gold Apple EarPods.
The former was expected to sell for $40,000-$60,000, but it went on to fetch nearly a million dollars — $977,000 to be exact. As for the latter, its sale value was estimated at $20,000 to $25,000, but it ended up being sold at an impressive $461,000.
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Also featured in the auction are a number of non-Apple products curated and customized by the design duo specially for the event.
These included the aluminum (RED) Desk, which was estimated at $300,000-$500,000 but sold for $1,685,000, and a custom-made Leica digital rangefinder camera, which was estimated at $500,000-$750,000 but sold for $1,805,000.
But as whopping as those figures may be, the top sale figure belongs to the unique "Red Pops for (RED)" parlor grand model A piano by Steinway & Sons, which incorporates design components hand-selected by Ive and Newson. Expected to sell for $150,000-$200,000, it went on to fetch $1,925,000.
Backed by the Product (RED) brand, which was cofounded by U2 frontman Bono, the (RED) Auction benefits The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
Before the auction, Ive and Newson sat down with Charlie Rose on his namesake TV interview show to discuss the charity event.
