Shot Sage Blue Marilyn by Warhol Sells for a World Record 195 Million USD

The world of art just got a big shot in the arms - worth almost 200 million USD at that!!

The iconic Marilyn Monroe is in the news again. 

Marilyn Monroe's silkscreen picture by Andy Warhol from 1964, probably one of the most iconic images of the 20th century, sold for a record-breaking $195 million (including fees) at Christie's New York on Monday evening. This makes it the most expensive 20th-century artwork ever sold at auction.

Shot Sage Blue Marilyn was painted by Warhol in 1964 using a well-known image as inspiration.The price is also the most ever paid for an American piece of art.

Shot Sage Blue Marilyn was purchased by art dealer Larry Gagosian, who was bidding in the room. In 2015, Picasso's Women of Algiers established the record for the most expensive 20th-century piece.

The New York Christie's auction was largely regarded as an indicator of the strength of the premium art market.

Prior to the auction, Christie's described the painting as

"one of the rarest and most sublime pictures in existence,"

with an estimated selling price of USD 200 million.

The auction concluded with a selling price of USD170 million, which increased to USD195 million after taxes and fees.

The previous record price for an American work of art was USD110.5 million for a 1982 painting of a skull by Warhol's sometimes buddy and sometimes rival, Jean-Michel Basquiat.

The final price surpasses the previous record for a 20th-century piece of art, which was achieved in 2015 when a 1955 painting by Pablo Picasso titled Les Femmes d'Alger (Version O) sold for USD 179.4 million, including fees.

In March, George Frei, chairman of the board of the Thomas and Doris Amman Foundation, remarked that the painting of Marilyn Monroe "bears testament to her undiminished visual impact in the new century."

"Marilyn the lady is gone; the tragic circumstances of her life and death have been forgotten,"

"All that remains is her mystery grin, which connects her to another mysterious smile of a prominent woman, the Mona Lisa."

Shot Sage Blue Marilyn (1964) is a news shot from Marilyn Monroe's noir film Niagara from 1953. Prior to his death in 1987, Warhol used the actress's picture regularly in his artwork. It stems from his "Shot Marilyn" picture series, which Warhol created following an event in his downtown studio in which he instructed his colleague Dorothy Podber to fire into a stack of canvases.

Alex Rotter, Chairman of 20th and 21st Century Art at Christie's, describes Shot Sage Blue Marilyn as the highest zenith of American Pop. The picture transcends the genre of portraiture and the art and culture of the 20th century. Marilyn is one of the greatest paintings of all time, with Botticelli's Birth of Venus, Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, and Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon.

According to Christie's, all profits from the sale will be donated to the Thomas and Doris Ammann Foundation Zurich, which strives to build healthcare and education programmes for children across the globe.

"Marilyn by Warhol is one of the best works of art ever created."

Source:Christie's