Lucian Freud’s Portrait Of David Hockney Sells For Over $20 Million
Image via Sotheby’s
A portrait of acclaimed artist David Hockney by fellow British painter Lucian Freud has just sold at Sotheby’s for £14.9 million (US$20.7 million). The portrait is now the sixth-most expensive work by Freud to go under the hammer.
According to Robb Report, five bidders from New York, London, and Asia competed for the work via phone. Eventually, a London-based bidder won with £12.8 million (US$17.7 million) pre-buyer’s premiums.
David Hockney, who was 65 at the time of the painting, sat for over 100 hours in the first half of 2002 to allow Freud to capture his likeness. According to Sotheby’s, during these sittings, the famed duo would gossip, sip tea, smoke, and discuss art together.
The portrait’s seller, who remains unnamed, purchased it from an American collector six years ago. The original owner had bought it privately from Freud’s dealer in 2003, for a reported £3 million (US$4.2 million), as per Robb Report.
The two titans of contemporary art met back in 1962, when Freud was already a well-established artist, and Hockney was still a student. When Freud passed away in 2011, Hockey said of the portrait: “All the hours I sat were layered into it; he had always added, rarely taken anything away.”
[via Robb Report, cover image via Sotheby’s]
Also check out these recent news
