How much would you pay for a painting? The late Francis Bacon’s triptych of his fellow painter Lucian Freud sold for $142 million at Christie’s Tuesday night, edging out Munch’s “Scream” for the title of Most Expensive Work of Art Sold at Auction.
And talk about inflation: That same night, Jeff Koons’ “Balloon Dog” — a 10-foot-tall stainless steel rendering of what looks like a party-clown treat — pulled in an eye-popping $58.4 million, a world record price for a single artwork by a living artist.
Then again, those are practically bargains considering how much deep-pocketed art lovers, most of them anonymous, have paid in private sales. Here’s a list of the most expensive artworks in the world — so far:
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1. $112 million
AP/Christie's Pablo Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust” (1932), to an anonymous buyer.
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2. $119.9 million
HO/AFP/Getty Images Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” (1895), yet another purchase by the royal family of Qatar.
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3. $126.4 million
Reuters/Sotheby's Pablo Picasso’s “Garçon à la Pipe” (1905), bought by Europe’s pasta makers, Barilla Group.
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4. $138.7 million
Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Pierre-August Renoir’s “Bal du Moulin de la Galette” (1876), another Saito purchase.
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5. $142 million
AP/Christie's Francis Bacon’s “Three Studies of Lucian Freud” (1969), a triptych bought by Acquavella Galleries in Manhattan.
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6. $146.5 million
DeAgostini/Getty Images Vincent van Gogh’s “Portrait of Dr. Gachet” (1890), bought by Japanese paper manufacturer Ryoei Saito.
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7. $152.6 million
Neue Galerie/REUTERS Gustav Klimt’s “Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I” (1907), bought by Ronald Lauder for his Neue Galerie on Fifth Avenue.
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8. $156.5 million
AP/Sotheby's Willem de Kooning’s “Woman III” (1953), bought by American hedge fund manager Steven A. Cohen.
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9. $159.4 million
AP Photo/Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center Jackson Pollock’s “No. 5, 1948” (1948), anonymous buyer.
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10. $254 million
Paul Cezanne’s “The Card Players” (1892-93), bought by the royal family of Qatar.