Andy Warhol's silkscreen of Brigitte Bardot sold for £3m at Sotheby's Gunter Sachs collection auction on Wednesday night (May 23).
It was one of eight Warhol portraits of Bardot commissioned by Sachs in 1974, five years after the German billionaire and art collector divorced from the film star.
 A year with Bardot is worth 10 with anyone else, we’re told |
Sachs said of the break-up that "a year with Bardot was worth 10 with anyone else."
Another, more colourful version of the eight, sold for £5.7m at Christie's in 2007, indicating the importance of "eye appeal" with collectors.
Nevertheless, some buyers believe that the latest Bardot to sell was something of a steal.
"The Bardot was the bargain of the night," Canadian collector Francois Odermatt told Bloomberg.
"We shouldn't judge Sachs's taste just from this sale. The family has kept a lot of the best pieces. After these results, they might do a Gunter Sachs II auction."
Warhol's Bardot was one of 41 works from the playboy's art collection which were auctioned at Sotheby's, a year after May 2011 suicide.
One of Warhol's last self-portraits, Pink Wig Fright, sold for £5.4m, almost doubling its £3m high estimate.
There was also a world record for a Warhol on paper, with his 1964 The Kiss (Bela Lugosi) achieving £3.2m.
The strong prices indicate the great demand for Warhol among collectors (up 28.86% pa since 1995) - we have a black sweater worn by the artist available to buy now - quintessential Warhol.
The world record for a Warhol stands at the $100m paid in a private sale in 2008 for his 1963 work Eight Elvises.
