A portrait of actress Marilyn Monroe made by US artist Andy Warhol has been auctioned in New York for around 195 million US dollars (around 185 million euros) – making it the most expensive work of art ever auctioned from the 20th century.
The 1964 “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn,” which is based on a photograph and shows the actress against a turquoise-blue background with yellow hair, red lips and turquoise eye shadow, was auctioned at Christie’s auction house on Monday, kicking off the traditional spring auction. The auction house calls the iconic pop art image the “modern Mona Lisa”.
Only the painting “Salvator Mundi” by Leonardo da Vinci, which dates from around the early 16th century and sold at auction in 2017 for $450.3 million, has brought in more at auction so far, making it the most expensive work of art ever sold at auction. It was initially unclear who bought the “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn”, which was previously estimated at “around 200 million dollars”. The picture comes from the Thomas and Doris Ammann Foundation in Zurich, which intends to use all proceeds from the auction for charitable purposes.