A collection of skateboard decks sold at Sotheby's Friday to a Vancouver collector for $800,000.
Sotheby's announced Friday morning that a young Vancouver collector, named Carson Guo, bought the set of 248 skate decks made by Supreme. The collection included all of the decks produced by Supreme between 1998 and 2018. It is the highest price ever paid for a skate-deck collection at auction.
The sale price averaged more than $3,200 per skate deck, though some of the decks were worth far more than others.
The auction shows how both skate culture and the Supreme brand have quickly become collector's items among the young rich. Both Sotheby's and Christie's have held auctions featuring products made by Supreme, the streetwear brand by British designer James Jebbia. Founded in 1994, the brand quickly gained special status among skateboarders. Starting in 1998, Supreme started creating limited-edition decks designed by famous artists like Jeff Koons and George Condo.
Last June, a series of eight custom boards designed by American artist Kaws sold at auction for $55,700.
The Supreme collection was assembled by Los Angeles collector Ryan Fuller, who spend 13 years finding and buying the decks.
Sotheby's said Guo was born in Vancouver "in a family of collectors" and plans to display the decks in a new shop opening in 2020.
"I am extremely thrilled to acquire this skate deck collection," Guo said in a Sotheby's statement, "and will continue to closely follow relevant auction news from Sotheby's."