Photo: ANGELA WEISS / Getty Images
The painting “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn” by Andy Warhol, which portrays the iconic face of Marilyn Monroe, was sold for $195 million of dollars in only 4 minutes and it became the most expensive work by an American artist ever to be auctioned.
The work broke the previous record that belonged to Jean-Michel Basquiat, whose work “Untitled” by 1982 of a cadaverous face sold at Sotheby’s for $110.5 million dollars in 2017.
Christie’s auction house, where the sale took place, indicated that Marilyn’s work was acquired by an anonymous buyer.
When the auction was announced a few months ago, it was estimated that the work could reach $200 millions of dollars.
The silkscreen image of 1964 shows Monroe in close-up with vibrant colors: yellow hair, blue eyeshadow and red lips on a turquoise background. It is also the most expensive 20th century work ever auctioned , according to Christie’s auction house.
“It’s an incredible price,” said Alex Rotter, chairman of Christie’s 20th and 21st century art department. “Think about that figure, it’s outstanding.”
Proceeds from the sale will go to the Thomas and Doris Ammann Foundation Zurich, which put the painting for sale. The foundation is dedicated to helping children through health and education programs.
Warhol created more than one image of Monroe, but this particular painting has been exhibited in museums around the world.
Just the name of Marilyn Monroe returned to monopolize the attention of the media around the world after the socialite and businesswoman Kim Kardashian wore the iconic Marilyn Monroe dress with which she congratulated for his birthday to President John F. Kennedy.
Auction seasons are back after the pandemic
Monday’s sale kicked off a spring auction season in a city that has only begun to return to normal after two years of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Clearly this is where we wanted arrive,” said Guillaume Cerutti, CEO of l to auction house. “This shows that we are in an art market with a lot of recovery capacity “.
Auctions will continue this week with Christie’s 21st Century Art Night Sale on Tuesday, as well as Anne H. Bass and 20th Century Art Collection Evening Sale on Thursday.
In that sale, Christie’s will offer a casting of Picasso’s bronze of 1909, “Head of a Woman (Fernande)”, which was recently withdrawn from the Museum Metropolitan of Art. It is estimated at $05 million dollars and is guaranteed .
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