The world is in a financial crisis, with interest rates and inflation at an all-time high in many countries, yet artwork continues selling for astronomical fees. Where some intelligent investors put their money in gold and other precious metals, the demand for art is still strong, as is evident by a new European record set in late June 2023.
In July 2021, Alt Fund II, an investment fund specializing in alternative assets, paid $5.9 million for a Stephen Curry National Treasures trading card, a record for a basketball card. The Golden State Warriors star is not only one of the most popular NBA players in round robin betting markets online, but this card is serial numbered one of one, so it is literally one of a kind. A year later, an anonymous buyer paid $12.6 million for a 1952 Mickey Mantle baseball card, making it the most expensive trading card ever.
Those sums are impressive but are blown out of the water by the $69.3 million paid at auction for the digital artwork “Every day: The First 5000 Days” by crypto artists Beeple. Investors’ willingness to purchase alternative artworks for huge prizes has pushed up demand for traditional art. Just last week, a new European record was set when Gustav Klimt’s Dame Mit Facher (Lasy with a Fan) fetched £85.3 million ($108 million) at a Sotheby’s London auction.
Estimate Exceeded by More Than £20 Million
Lady with a Fan is the last known portrait Klimt completed. Indeed, it was found in an easel in his studio when the Austrian artist unexpectedly died of a stroke and pneumonia in 1918. The square painting depicts a woman wearing a robe slipping from her shoulder, with a yellow background with Asian motifs. It originally sold for $11.6 million at Sotheby’s in New York in 1994 (a record at the time for a Klimt piece) and was expected to fetch £65 million at this latest auction.
However, after four bidders embarked on a fast and furious ten-minute bidding war, Patti Wong of Patti Wong & Associates logged the winning bid of £85.3 million ($108 million) on behalf of a Hong Kong collector. That eye-watering price surpassed the previous European auction record of £65 million paid for the L’homme qui marche I (The Walking Man I) sculpture by Alberto Giacometti, sold at Sotheby’s London in 2020. Indeed, Lady with a Fan is now the most expensive Klimt works in history, having beaten the $104.6 million paid for Birch Forest in New York last year.
About Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt was born in Baumgarten, Austrian Empire, on July 14, 1862. He became a prominent member of the Vienna Secession and became known for his love of Japanese art and for his love of painting the female body.
By the early 1900s, Klimt had a glowing reputation for producing spectacular pieces. He had begun using gold leaf in many of his works, including Judith I, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I, and The Kiss.
In 1911, Klimt’s Death and Life received first prize in the Rome world exhibitions, and Klimt was in his pomp. However, on February 6, 1918, Klimt, already enduring pneumonia brought on by the global influenza epidemic of that year, suffered a stroke that ultimately proved fatal, robbing the world of an incredibly talented artist.
On July 14, 2012, both Google and the Austrian Mint commemorated Klimt on his 150th birthday. Google created one of its now famous Google doodles using Klimt’s The Kiss, while the Austrian Mine produced a five-coin gold series to celebrate Klimt’s life. It minted a 50 Euro gold coin featuring a portrait of Klimt and part of his Adele Bloch-Bauer painting on the reverse side.