Gustav Klimt's late masterpiece reaches record price in European auction history

The painting "Lady with a Fan" by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt was sold for $108 million at Sotheby's auction in London (UK) on June 27, becoming the most expensive work of art in European auction history.

The portrait was sold to a Hong Kong collector after a 10-minute bidding war, for £74 million ($94.35 million) – far exceeding its pre-sale estimate of £65 million. Including the buyer's premium, the painting cost $108 million.

"Lady with a Fan" is the last portrait that Austrian artist Gustav Klimt completed before his death in 1918. Painted between 1917 and 1918, the 100x100 cm painting depicts an unidentified woman wearing a flowing robe, holding a fan, smiling confidently, against a vibrant, oriental background with typical motifs such as phoenixes, cranes, dragons and lotus flowers.

The last time "Lady with a Fan" was auctioned was in 1994 in New York (USA), when the work was bought for 11.6 million USD.

The sale of "Lady with a Fan" broke the previous European auction record for a work of art. In 2010, Alberto Giacometti's sculpture "Walking Man I" was sold at Sotheby's for $104.3 million (£65 million), including the premium.

Famous for his bold paintings, the artist Klimt is a typical representative of modernism in art in the early 20th century. His works often fetch very high prices, the record is "Water Serpents II", more than 183 million USD - the work ranked 7th in the top 10 most expensive paintings in the world today. The Times magazine ranked Gustav Klimt among the 10 greatest painters of the 20th century.

(According to VNA)

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