In most cases, buyers of particularly expensive works of art wish to remain anonymous. But often this relevant information leaks out. We took a look at ten works of art that have changed hands for record sums and their illustrious owners.
Vincent van Gogh, Portrait of Dr. Gachet (1890)
In the Musée d'Orsay in Paris a portrait can be admired that Vincent van Gogh painted in 1890 of Dr. Paul-Ferdinand Gachet, who looked after him in the last weeks of his life, but was unable to prevent the painter from committing suicide. However, Van Gogh did not portray Gachet just once, but twice. While the second is on display at the Musée d'Orsay, the first was sold at Christie's in New York on 15 May 1990, where it fetched $82.5 million. The buyer was the Japanese entrepreneur and art collector Saitō Ryōei. Shortly after purchasing it, Saitō said he wanted to be buried with the painting. In fact, the portrait has been considered lost since the entrepreneur's death in 1996.
See also: 8 Paintings that Vincent Van Gogh Copied
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Bal du moulin de la Galette (1876)
Two days after purchasing the Van Gogh, Saitō Ryōei upped the ante and bought Renoir's 1876 Bal du moulin de la Galette at Sotheby's for $78.1 million. This was also another version of a painting on display at the Musée d'Orsay. This painting definitely did not end up in Saitō Ryōei's grave in 1996, but was later sold to an anonymous collector.
Gustav Klimt, Adele Bloch-Bauer II (1912)
Barely a year after Gustav Klimt's portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II was restituted to Maria Altmann, heiress to the former owner Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer, in January 2006, it went under the hammer at Christie's. The realized price was $87.9 million – an auction record for Gustav Klimt (Adele Bloch-Bauer I sold for $135 million in a private sale conducted by Christie's in June 2006). It later emerged that Oprah Winfrey was the buyer of Adele Bloch-Bauer II. Winfrey resold the painting to an unknown Chinese collector in 2016 for $150 million.
See also: Were Gustav Klimt and Adele Bloch-Bauer Lovers?
Edvard Munch, The Scream (1895)
On 2 May 2012, the 1895 pastel version of Edvard Munch's iconic work The Scream became the most expensive painting in auction history when it went under the hammer at Sotheby's in New York for $119.9 million. The consignor was the Norwegian entrepreneur Petter Olsen, who had inherited the picture as part of his mother's art collection. The buyer was the American entrepreneur and art collector Leon Black, who also sits on the supervisory boards of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and MoMA.
See also: What Lies Beneath the Red Sky of Munch’s ‘The Scream’?
Francis Bacon, Three Studies of Lucian Freud (1969)
As early as November 2013, The Scream was replaced as the most expensive work of art in auction history by the triptych Three Studies of Lucian Freud, which was executed by Francis Bacon in 1969. The buyer was Steve Wynn's entrepreneur, art collector and two-time ex-wife, Elaine Wynn (the couple had been married from 1963 to 1989 and then again from 1991 to 2010). Together, the Wynns founded Mirage Resorts, which was instrumental in the development of the Las Vegas Strip.
Georgia O'Keeffe, Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1 (1932)
Georgia O'Keeffe has been able to claim the title of the most expensive female artist in auction history since November 20, 2014 , when her painting Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1 changed hands at Sotheby's for $44.4 million. The buyer was the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas, where O'Keeffe's painting is now displayed alongside works by artists such as John Singer Sargent, Norman Rockwell, Kerry James Marshall, Andy Warhol and Mark Rothko.
See also: The 15 Most Expensive Female Artists
Amedeo Modigliani, Nu couché (1917)
Since its auction on 9 November 2015 at Christie's in New York, the work Nu couché, painted by Amedeo Modigliani in 1917, has belonged to the Chinese industrial magnate Liu Yiqian, who is exhibiting it in the Long Museum he founded in the metropolis of Chongqing. Although Nu couché fetched a staggering $170.4 million at auction, it wasn't the most expensive artwork of the 2015 auction year. That title went to Les femmes d'Alger ('O' version) by Pablo Picasso from 1955, which became the most expensive painting in auction history, fetching $179.4 million. The buyer is said to have been the former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatar, Hamad ibn Jasim ibn Jabr Al Thani.
Want to receive articles like this straight to your inbox? Subscribe to our free newsletter!
Jean Michel Basquiat, Untitled (1982)
Jean-Michel Basquiat's 1982 Untitled sold for $110.4 million at Sotheby's New York on 18 May 2017, almost doubling Basquiat's previous auction record set in 2016. In both cases, the billionaire Japanese e-commerce entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa was the buyer. Untitled became the most expensive work by an American artist on the auction market, but lost that throne when Andy Warhol's Shot Sage Blue Marilyn from 1964 was sold to an unknown collector in May 2022 for $195.04 million.
See also: The Basquiat Boom: His 5 Most Expensive Paintings
Leonardo da Vinci, Salvator Mundi (around 1500)
When it became known that Leonardo da Vinci's Salvator Mundi would be auctioned at Christie's in New York in November 2017, the interest from around the world was huge. When the painting then sold for $450.3 million, everyone wanted to know who had spent this gigantic sum. It was initially said to be exhibited in the newly opened Louvre Abu Dhabi, but time passed and Salvator Mundi never showed up there. Doubts about Leonardo's actual authorship were also raised again and again. Finally, it was revealed that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bought the artwork, allegedly keeping it on his luxury yacht Serene.
Claude Monet, Meules (1890)
See also: The 12 Most Expensive Paintings Ever Auctioned
With almost half a billion dollars for da Vinci, Claude Monet's record work can't keep up, but $110.7 million isn't that bad either. Sold in May 2019 at Sotheby's New York, this prize was not only an artist's record, but also an overall record for an Impressionist painting. The buyer was the German software billionaire Hasso Plattner, who lent it to the Barberini Museum in Potsdam, which his foundation opened in January 2017. The museum houses Plattner's Impressionist and Post-Impressionist collection, which also includes works by artists such as Eugène Boudin, Gustave Caillebotte, Paul Signac, Paul Cézanne and Alfred Sisley.
