Chapter 3: Monetary Value

Let's watch a Christie's Links to an external site. auction of a van Gough Links to an external site. (February 2012).

The record for the highest price for an artwork by a living artist was set on October 15, 2012 at Sotheby’s Links to an external site. when Gerhard Richter Links to an external site.’s Abstraktes Bild, 1993 was sold for $34 million dollars Links to an external site..

The previous owner of the painting was Eric Clapton Links to an external site., who originally bought the painting for $3.2 million in 2001, only to sell it for 10 times the price tag 11 years later.

The painting, Abstraktes Bild, was expected to sell between ($14.5 million and $19.3 million, according to the Sotheby's listing. But a bidding war erupted between two anonymous buyers, catapulting the Richter squeegee painting to double that amount. 

After the record-breaking sale, art critics claimed Richter's work has performed well in part to a recent retrospectives at London's Tate Museum Links to an external site. and the Neu Nationalgalerie in Berlin Links to an external site.. (See museums are involved in the business of art!)

In a recent article, Georgina Adam at The Telegraph describes the allure of Richter' Links to an external site.s paintings: "Richter’s late, abstract works are particularly sought after because of their broad appeal: colourful abstracts which can fit into any interior, cannot offend anyone (unlike some of his tougher earlier works which deal with death or politics) and are recognizable trophies which give the owner immense bragging rights."

The previous record was held by Jasper Johns Links to an external site. in 2010 after his Flag sold for $28.5 million at Christie’s.