[Mrluvaluva]

A painting by US artist Mark Rothko has set a record for a contemporary work of art, selling for $86.9m (£53.8m) at auction in New York.





The large-scale, sunset-coloured "Orange, red, yellow" was hotly in demand, with bids at the Christie's auction rising by up to $2m a time.

The final price easily broke the previous record for Rothko's most expensive work of $72.84m (£45m) and in the process became the most expensive contemporary work of art at auction, Christie's said.

Contemporary art is defined as art produced since World War II.

Collectors were in full cry all auction, knocking down 14 artists' records and repeatedly meeting or exceeding pre-sale high estimates.

Total takings of $388.5 (£240.5m) were the highest ever for a contemporary art auction, Christie's said.

Among the other stars of the show was Yves Klein's FC1, which depicts the X-ray-like outlines of two nude models captured on canvas through a mixture of paint, water and flames.

It had been estimated to fetch up to $40m (£24.7m). Although the hammer came down at the relatively flat $36.5m (£22.6m), including commission, that smashed Klein's previous $23.6m (£14.6m) record.

One of the most exciting bidding wars was for Gerhard Richter's "Abstraktes Bild," which sold for $21.8m (£13.5m), well above the $18m (£11.1m) estimate, and also a record high for the artist.

Auctioneer Christopher Burge worked to ensure the super-wealthy bidders paid the highest prices. He gave short shrift to one who requested upping an offer on a bid by just $50,000 (£31,000) "Absolutely not," he said.


Sky

[MTVN]

Worth every penny by the looks of it