10 most expensive sculptures sold at auction

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The rise in prices for art objects did not bypass sculpture either, despite the fact that for quite a long time this direction in prices lagged significantly behind painting. The given rating is not official and does not claim a special status. It does not matter here the material from which the sculpture was made, nor its age, nor the time and place of sale. What all these sculptures have in common is the impressive sums that collectors have paid for them.

"Walking Man I." Alberto Giacometti

The most expensive sculpture ever sold at auction is the bronze statue of "Walking Man I" by the famous Swiss master Alberto Giacometti. The sculptor of a man advancing in space (height 183 cm) was created in 1961, and displays vitality. “A modest image of a man, but a powerful symbol of eternity,” the organizers of the auction called the sculpture. The peculiarity of the work is that it is reduced to minimal forms and thereby emphasizes the loneliness of a person in the world and the fragility of his soul. The sculpture was sold in February 2010 at the Sothby's auction in London for $ 104, 327 million.

"For the love of the Lord." Damien Hirst

In second place in the ranking of the most expensive sculptures is the skull "For the love of God." The author of the work is Damien Hirst from the UK. The artist made a platinum copy of the skull of a European from the 18th century. In a platinum skull, cells for diamonds were made by a laser (there are 8601 of them in the skull), the jaw is made of platinum, but the teeth are inserted into the skull. The skull is crowned with a pink diamond 52, 4 carats. In 2007, the skull was exhibited at the White Cube Gallery. The sculpture "For the love of God" was sold in 2010 for $ 100 million. It is said that Damien Hirst himself was in the group of investors.

It should be noted that the skull is a fairly popular art object today. Recently, the artist Nino Sarabutra created an unusual exhibition "What will you leave behind?" - one hundred thousand skulls in the exhibition space.

"Head". Amedeo Modigliani

The third place goes to the sculpture "Head", created in 1910 by the sculptor and painter Amedeo Modigliani. Experts draw analogies between Modigliani's sculpture and the famous bust of Queen Nefertiti, which is kept in the Egyptian Museum in Berlin. The height of the sculpture is 65 cm. All the features characteristic of the works of Modigliani are traced in it - almond-shaped eyes, an oval face, a long thin nose, an elongated neck, a small mouth. The sculpture was sold in 2010 at Christie's in Paris. According to François de Rickle, president of the French auction, collectors from all over the world were bargaining for the work of the famous Italian sculptor by telephone. The "head" went under the hammer for $ 59.5 million. The name of the buyer was not disclosed.

"Lioness Guennola". Unknown author

In fourth place in the ranking is the 8-centimeter statuette "Lioness of Guennola", which was made of limestone 5000 years ago in Mesopotamia. From 1948 to 2007, the statuette belonged to US collector Alistair Bradley Martin and was exhibited with his permission at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. At the Sothby's auction, 5 collectors fought for the figurine. The organizers of the auction hoped to sell the Lioness of Guennola for $ 14-18 million, but as a result it was sold for $ 57, 16. The ex-owner sent all the proceeds to a special charitable foundation.

Diego's Big Head. Alberto Giacometti

Closes the top 5 most expensive sculptures "Diego's Big Head" by Alberto Giacometti (Switzerland). The sculpture, 65 cm high, was created in 1954, and his brother Diego posed for the sculptor. In 2010, at Christie’s auction, the sculpture was sold for $ 53, 282 million, and in November 2013, the sculpture at New York Sothby's, a bronze bust was sold for $ 32, 6 million, having somewhat lost its position.

"Nude female figure from the back IV". Henri Matisse

The sixth place is held by the bronze bas-relief "Nude female figure from the back IV", created in 1958 by the impressionist Henri Matisse. In 2010, the sculpture was sold at Christie's for $ 48.8 million. Connoisseurs call this work the most striking of the four works of the series "Standing with his back to the viewer", which Matisse created in the period from 1909 to 1930. A plaster cast for each series was cast in 12 copies at once. Today, the complete series are kept at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, at the Tate Gallery in London and at the Center Pompidou in Paris. Until 2010, none of the sculptures in this cycle were put up for auction.

"Madame L. R." by Konstantin Brancusi

The sculpture "Madame LR" made of wood by the Romanian sculptor Constantin Brancusi in February 2009 was sold at Christie's for $ 37.2 million. According to art critics, the sculpture combines a unique style of Carpathian carving and African motifs.

Lying Figure by Henry Moore

The eighth place in the ranking is occupied by the "Lying Figure" (1951) by the sculptor of the last century - Henry Moore. The length of the sculpture is 244.5 cm. At the open auction of the Christie's trading house "The Reclining Figure" went to the hammer for $ 30, 148 million. In total, Moore cast 5 copies of the sculpture. In 2005, one of the sculptures fell victim to malefactors. She was kidnapped in a matter of minutes from an estate in Hertfordshire, owned by Henry Moore himself, loaded with a winch into the back of a truck right under surveillance cameras.

"Head of a Woman" by Pablo Picasso

In ninth place is the "Head of a Woman" by the great Spanish sculptor, artist, designer and graphic artist Pablo Picasso. The great master dedicated this work to his beloved French artist Douro Maar. In the fall of 2007, at the Sotheby’s auction, a sculpture 80 cm high was sold for $ 29, 161 million with an extremity of $ 20-30 million. A bronze bust was purchased by a private collector, Frank Giraud. It is worth noting that 4 copies of this sculpture were cast by Picasso.

"Artemis with a deer". Unknown author

Closes the top 10 most expensive sculptures "Artemis with a deer", created by an unknown author in the 1st century. BC NS. - I century. n. NS. This sculpture is by far the most expensive antique sculpture sold at auction. She left the auction at Sotheby’s for $ 28.6 million. Despite its considerable age, the sculpture has survived surprisingly well.