Francis Bacon’s Triptych $142.4 Million, is the most expensive artwork ever sold at an auction

Francis Bacon (1909-1992)
Three Studies of Lucian Freud
oil on canvas,198 x 147.5 cm. Painted in 1969.
Price Realized $142,405,000 Christie’s 12 November, 2013 New York

The price for the painting, which depicts Lucian Freud, Bacon’s friend and rival, perched on a wooden chair, was more than the $85 million Christie’s had estimated.

It took seven superrich bidders to propel a 1969 Francis Bacon triptych to $142.4 million at Christie’s on Tuesday night, making it the most expensive work of art ever sold at auction. William Acquavella, the New York dealer, is thought to have bought the painting on behalf of an unidentified client, from one of Christie’s skyboxes overlooking the auction.

Read full article: NYTimes – At $142.4 Million, Triptych Is the Most Expensive Artwork Ever Sold at an Auction