Bacon Triptych Sells Wondrously for $34.5 Million
By Jane Ivory
17:42, July 1st 2008
31 votes
Vote this story

A set of three self-portraits painted by Francis Bacon fetched $34.5 million Monday at Christie’s sale of post-war and contemporary art in London.

The Francis Bacon triptych had been estimated to go for $20 million and fared spectacularly better than anticipated. Made of panels measuring 14-by-12-inches, the triptych titled “Three Studies for Self-Portrait” was created by the artist between the 1960s and mid-1970s.

“I loathe my own face, but I go on painting it only because I haven’t got any other people to do,” the painter told British art critic and curator David Sylvester at the time, as quoted by the New York Times.

The artist’s record price at auction was set in May, when a larger triptych titled “Triptych, 1976” was sold for $86.3 million at Sotheby’s in New York.

Other spectacular sales Monday night were a sculpture by Jeff Koons, “Balloon Flower (Magenta),” sold for $25.8 million, a record for this artist, and Lucian Freud’s 1980 canvas “Naked Portrait With Reflection,” which went for $23.5 million.

Koons’ previous record was $23.6 million for “Hanging Heart (Magenta/Gold)” at Sotheby’s in New York in November.

Freud’s painting had been expected to fetch $3 million to $3.9 million. The painter holds the record auction price for a work by a living artist, after “Benefits Supervisor Sleeping” fetched $33.6 million in New York in May.

Last week, one of Claude Monet’s water lily paintings, titled “Le Basin Aux Nympheas,” created in the early 1900s, was sold at Christie’s in London for $80,451,178, breaking the auction record for the French impressionist artist. The painting is part of a collection of large-scale paintings of water lily paintings that Monet put up for sale during his lifetime.



© 2007 - 2008 - eFluxMedia
dotclear

Other News in

Internet Social Networking Is Good For Your Children

Internet Social Networking Is Good For Your Children

Parents shouldn’t worry because their children today spend too much time in front of a computer, and thinkthat their social skills are affected. Such electronic devices are beneficial for children....

“Chinese Democracy,” Seventeen Years Of Expectations

“Chinese Democracy,” Seventeen Years Of Expectations

“Chinese Democracy,” the first album of new Guns N’ Roses songs since 1991 is being released on Sunday, with CDs sold exclusively at Best Buy. On Sept. 26, Billboard broke the news that the album...

Annette Gordon-Reed Wins National Book Awards

This year’s National Book Awards was a very special edition as the grand winner is an African-American writer, Annette Gordon-Reed, who has become the first African-American to have won the...

Astronauts Still Have A Lot Of Work To Do

Astronauts Still Have A Lot Of Work To Do

The Endeavour space shuttle launched off Friday for the International Space Station, carrying various equipment that aims at making life on the orbiting space station more comfortable and easier. One...

Madonna Divorce To Be finalized On Friday

Madonna Divorce To Be finalized On Friday

London - The end of the seven-year marriage between US pop star Madonna and her British film director husband Guy Ritchie is to be sealed before the High Court in London Friday, it has been...

dotclear
Latest videos in Specials
Prostitute Apologizes to Wife...
Tokyo dining shines despite...
Holland gets tough on cannabis
Australian farms fear locust...
Charlize Theron Brings Star...

dotclear
Specials You are here: Specials
» Specials   
E-mail To A Friend Print RSS Text size: Decrease font size Increase font size
dotclear
dotclear
dotclear
Most Popular in Specials
The Time Has Come For The Beatles’ Experimental TrackThe Time Has Come For The Beatles’ Experimental Track

» read full story
dotclear

Interested In This Topic?

News Alert will keep you informed. Find out more.
dotclear
Photos Gallery
dotclear
Today's Latest News
Paris Hilton Frees Herself From Benji MaddenParis Hilton Frees Herself From Benji Madden

» read full story
dotclear