Amedeo Modigliani’s ‘La Belle Romaine’ sells for $68.9 million

Amedeo Modigliani
Nu assis sur un divan (La Belle Romaine)

Amedeo Modigliani’s ‘La Belle Romaine’ sells for $68.9 million Amedeo Modigliani’s ‘Nu assis sur un divan (La Belle Romaine)’ sells for $68.9 million at Sotheby’s, while Monet’s ‘Le Bassin aux Nymphéas’ goes for $24.7 million]]>

November 3rd, 2010, source: Sotheby’s
November 2010 sale of Impressionist and Modern Art at Sotheby’s in New York brought astrong total of $227,561,000, comfortably within the pre-sale estimate of $195/266 million.

“We are delighted with the results of our sale, which build on the success of the past year, and are our best inthis category in New York since May 2008,” said Simon Shaw, Head of Sotheby’s Impressionist and ModernArt Department in New York. “It was a great night for Modigliani. La Belle Romaine, his breathtaking nudefrom circa 1917, provoked spirited bidding from at least five clients and ultimately eclipsed the previous recordfor the artist at auction, set earlier this year. That price represents over four times the price realized when it wassold at Sotheby’s in 1999, a then record $16.8 million. The depth of bidding from all over the world, includingAsia, Europe, Russia and the United States, was particularly notable,” Mr. Shaw added.

Two of the other highlights this evening were sold to benefit YoungArts, the Core Program of the NationalFoundation for Advancement in the Arts. Le Bassin aux Nymphéas, the spectacular canvas from ClaudeMonet’s iconic water lilies series, sold for $24,722,500 (est. $20/30 million) and Jeanne Hébuterne (auchapeau), one of the first portraits Amedeo Modigliani painted of his great love, sold for $19,122,500, well inexcess of the high estimate (est. $9/12 million).

This evening’s sale included a group of works by Henri Matisse attesting to his genius in different media.Danseuse dans le fauteuil, sol en damier, a visually-arresting canvas that marked the beginning of arevolutionary campaign in Matisse’s art in the fall of 1942 fetched $20,802,500, above a high estimate of$18 million