The art world is abuzz this week with the news that Amedeo Modigliani’s controversial nude entitled “Nu Couché” sold for the 2nd highest price ever fetched by a piece of art at auction. With its $170.4 million final price tag, the piece became the 10th work of art to ever fetch nine figures at an auction. Learn more about this exciting development in today’s blog.
Modigliani’s “Nu Couché”
Modigliani Fetches 2nd Highest Auction Price Ever
While there were concerns that Modigliani’s intimate piece would be too provocative for fine art collectors at Christie’s auction on Monday, “Nu Couché” quickly laid those fears to rest when 6 bidders tensely vied to win the piece over the course of the 9 minute auction. The winning bid went to Liu Yiqian, a Chinese billionaire who began his career as a taxi driver before becoming a fine art collector. The final price is second only to that earned by Picasso’s “Les Femmes d’Alger,” which sold for the equivalent of $179.4 million in 1955. That auction was also brokered by Christie’s.
Virtually unknown during his lifetime in the early 20th century, interest in Modigliani’s work has grown as collectors have begun to recognize the enduring value of investing in his pieces. The price earned by “Nu Couché” greatly exceeded recent sales of other examples of his work, including his “Portrait de Paulette Jourdain” which was sold during Sotheby’s sale of the Taubmen Collection last week for $42.8 million.
See more about this record-setting auction:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-10/chinese-billionaire-buys-modigliani-for-record-170-4-million
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/modiglianis-record-setting-painting-just-entered-one-of-arts-rarest-clubs-2015-11-10
http://www.forbes.com/sites/adamlehrer/2015/11/09/christies-auction-the-artists-muse-prepares-to-smash-records-with-work-by-modigliani-and-more/
Questions? Call Patty Barnett at 504.524.2922
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Tags: fine art, modigliani