Rarely seen Francis Bacon artwork sells for $45.4m at Sothebys
- 10 years ago
A Francis Bacon small-format triptych of his lover George Dyer made what Sotheby's called a "landmark" price of 26.7 million pounds, (45.4 million US dollars) on Monday.
The 1967 work was one of about 40 such triptychs that the artist painted in a format of 11 by 14 inches for each of the three frames. It was the star of the show for a packed auction in London
The work has an interesting history, as Cheyenne Westphal, chairman of Sotheby's contemporary art department explained.
SOUNDBITE, Cheyenne Westhphal, Sotheby's, saying (English):
"The story between Francis Bacon and George Dyer is actually extraordinary, they actually met because George Dyer broke into Francis Bacon's mews house and they became friends, lovers and extremely close. Very sadly George Dyer committed suicide on the night of Bacon's biggest and most important exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris in 1971."
The previous top price for a similar Bacon triptych was 23 million pounds whil
The 1967 work was one of about 40 such triptychs that the artist painted in a format of 11 by 14 inches for each of the three frames. It was the star of the show for a packed auction in London
The work has an interesting history, as Cheyenne Westphal, chairman of Sotheby's contemporary art department explained.
SOUNDBITE, Cheyenne Westhphal, Sotheby's, saying (English):
"The story between Francis Bacon and George Dyer is actually extraordinary, they actually met because George Dyer broke into Francis Bacon's mews house and they became friends, lovers and extremely close. Very sadly George Dyer committed suicide on the night of Bacon's biggest and most important exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris in 1971."
The previous top price for a similar Bacon triptych was 23 million pounds whil