"Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" by Gustav Klimt was sold at auction in New York for $236.4 million. The canvas became the second most expensive painting ever sold at auction. The record remains with da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi," DW reports.
"Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt was sold at auction in New York for $236.4 million (€204.1 million). This was reported by Sotheby’s auction house on the night of Wednesday, November 19. For the painting, six bidders competed for 20 minutes. The identity of the buyer is not disclosed.
The second most expensive painting ever sold at auction At Sotheby’s, the canvas was called "the most expensive work of contemporary art" in history. The portrait also became the second most expensive painting ever sold at auction. The record remains with Leonardo da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi" - in 2017, the painting was purchased for $450 million.
Two other paintings were sold for more: Willem de Kooning's "Interchange" for $300 million in 2015 and Paul Cézanne's "The Card Players" for $250 million in 2012. However, these were private sales, not public auctions.
Art historians explain the price of Klimt's masterpiece by the fact that it is a full-length portrait created during the peak of the master's creativity. Almost all similar works are in the collections of major museums. Another comparable painting by Klimt, "Lady with a Fan," was sold in London in 2023 for £85.3 million (€94 million).
Image of the Daughter of Klimt's Wealthy Patron
"Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" is an image of the daughter of Klimt's wealthy patron, Austrian industrialist August Lederer. The girl in a white dress with elements of clothing in the style of imperial China is depicted against a blue tapestry with Asian motifs.
The work was created in 1914-1916, two years before Klimt's death. During World War II, the Nazis confiscated the painting, and it was later returned to the Lederer family. In recent years, the canvas was part of the collection of Leonard Alan Lauder, heir to the American brand Estée Lauder. He passed away in June 2025.
Klimt was a representative of symbolism and Viennese modernism in painting. He is widely known for his paintings "The Kiss" and the gold-tinged "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer."
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