Less than a year ago, the royal family of Qatar paid $250m for Cezanne’s “The Card Players,” establishing the painting as the world’s most expensive artwork. Last night at Christie’s in New York, a study for that painting sold for $19.1m. The watercolor, only recently unearthed in the collection of a Texas doctor, sold to an anonymous buyer at the upper end of its $15m-$20m estimate.Five versions of “The Card Players” exist. The example sold last year is the only one remaining in private hands. Like the full-scale paintings, the watercolor sold last night features the figure of Paulin Paulet, a gardener on Cezanne’s estate. Sharing the top spot at last night’s Impressionist and Modern Art sale was Henri Matisse’s “Les Pivoines”(1907), which also sold for $19.1m, well above its $12m high estimate.
Cezanne Study Sells For $19.1m
May 02, 2012
Most Successful Art Auction Ever
May 16, 2013With metronomic regularity, works of Contemporary Art soared to dizzying prices at Christie’s last night in New York, as the auction house achieved a record $496m, the highest ever in the history of art auctions. Most works exceeded their high estimates, and 15 new artist records were set, including the $58.4m that a buyer paid for Jackson Pollock’s “Number 19, 1948,” which turned out to be the star of the evening.
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Bizarre Topless Photo of Jolie, $45,500
May 16, 2013A bizarre topless photo of Angelina Jolie called “Horseplay” sold at Christie’s London auction last night for $45,500. The “Wild Side of Photography” sale was scheduled well before Jolie’s double mastectomy announcement. Taken when she was 25, the photo also prominently displays a “Billy Bob” tattoo, referring to former husband Thornton who has since been removed from her shoulder and her life.
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Spotlight On Contemporary Art In New York
May 13, 2013Last week in New York, as major auction houses took in more than $473m, the spotlight was on Impressionist & Modern Art. This week, the focus shifts to the more uncertain field of Contemporary Art, with several hundred works coming up for sale. The action starts tomorrow at Sotheby’s, where a blue abstract by Barnett Newman, “Onement VI,” owned by Microsoft founder Paul Allen, is expected to sell for $30m-$40m.
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Rising Value of Unrestored Cars
By Malcolm Welford, Vintage Car Specialist
