Rogues’ Gallery
Jan. 11 (Bloomberg) — An Andy Warhol print of Mao Zedong that the late actor Dennis Hopper shot up during a wild night in the 1970s sold for $302,500 at Christie’s International in New York today.
The price, which included buyer’s commission, was more than 10 times the high presale estimate of $30,000. “Warhol’s Mao: one plate” was among over 200 artworks Christie’s was selling from the estate of the actor, who died at 74 last year from prostate cancer.
The blue-faced Mao print went to investment banker Amed Khan, who bested several telephone bidders to acquire his first Warhol.
“I heard about it over the years,” said Khan, about the work. “It’s a remarkable piece of history.” Hopper shot the print twice when he mistook it for the actual Chinese leader, according to Christie’s.
This may lead to an unfortunate trend, however….
2050: The estate of the late Charles Sheen is offering for sale his art collection. The paintings include “Sunday Afternoon on the Island of the Grand Jatte”, a collaborative work by George Seurat and Mr. Sheen. The 19th century Frenchman did the original work and Mr. Sheen subsequently connected the dots with several cans of Cheez Whiz. Presale estimate: $4 billion, with an opening bid of $27.
Another offered work was originally titled “The Execution of Emperor Maximilian”, Edouard Manet’s depiction of the unfortunate Austrian Archduke’s appointment with a Mexican firing squad. To Mr. Sheen however, the scene seemed unfair. So, with the use of some magic markers, he had the bullets bouncing off Maximilian and the Emperor firing back. Presale estimate: $700 million with an opening bid of just take the damn thing.
The art market: a world where people who don’t know what they’re talking about spend untold sums to buy objects some other know-nothing says are important.