Most Expensive Artworks and Paintings

Exploring the world of art often leads to a fascinating intersection of creativity and commerce, particularly when it comes to the most expensive paintings ever sold. These masterpieces not only reflect the artistic genius of their creators but also embody the cultural and historical significance that drives their staggering price tags.

The value of a painting can be influenced by various factors, including the artist's reputation, the artwork's provenance, and its condition. As you delve into this, consider not only the monetary aspects but also the stories behind these artworks. 

Each painting carries with it a narrative of its creation, ownership, and the impact it has had on society. This exploration will not only enrich your understanding of art valuation but also enhance your appreciation for the cultural legacies these masterpieces represent.

Portrait of Joseph Roulin, Vincent Van Gogh (£36.7 million)

In 1989 the Museum of Modern Art in New York bought this painting from a private collection in Zurich for $58 million (£36.7 million). Accounting for inflation, this remains one of the most expensive paintings ever sold. The portrait was painted exactly 100 years before the sale and is one of six Van Gogh painted of his close friend Roulin, who was a postman in Arles.

Les femmes d'Alger (Version O) – Picasso (£116 million)

To hollering cheers and applause, a lot of head-shaking and even more gasps, a Pablo Picasso masterpiece went under the hammer for a world record auction price on Monday evening of $179.4 million (£116m).

There was an audible intake of breath in Christie's Rockefeller Centre auction room in midtown Manhattan when the bids for the vibrantly-hued canvas of Les femmes d'Alger (Version O) hit $150 million. At $151 million, Jussi Pylkkanen, the Christie's president, chief auctioneer and master of ceremonies for the evening, declared: "We're in new territory". Three million dollars later, some attendees simply laughed.  And at $160 million - or that historic figure of $179.4 million when all the fees were included - Mr Pylkkanen spread his arms, cast his eyes around the room a final time and brought down his hammer.

When Will You Marry? (Nafea faa ipoipo), Paul Gaugin (£197 million).

In February this year Gaugin's 1892 oil painting sold at the highest price ever for a work of art: $300 million, or £197million. It was sold privately by major Swiss art collector Rudolf Staechelin to an unknown buyer. When Gaugin returned to Europe from Tahiti in the early 1890s, his paintings of indigenous subjects (When Will You Marry? among them) were met with indifference, but later influenced the likes of Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and Joan Miro.

The Card Players, Paul Cezanne (£158.4 million)

Cezanne's 1890s painting of two working-class men from his family's estate was bought by the Qatari royal family for $250 million (£158.4 million) - more than double the previous auction record. Although the sale took place in 2011, the details of the secret deal only emerged in February 2012. The painting had previously belonged to Greek shipping magnate George Embiricos and the four other Cezanne paintings in the post-Impressionist series are held by the Musee d'Orsay in Paris, New York's Museum of Modern Art, the Courtauld Institute in London and the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia.

Three Studies of Lucian Freud, Francis Bacon (£89.3 million)

The Francis Bacon triptych of his friend and rival artist Lucian Freud became the most valuable work of art ever sold at auction in November 2013, fetching $142.4 million (almost £90 million) at Christie's in New York. 'Three Studies of Lucian Freud', which was painted in painted in 1969, was one of only two full- length triptychs Bacon ever painted of Freud.

No. 5, Jackson Pollock (£89 million)

Another sale shrouded in secrecy, the purchase of Jackson Pollock's 1948 painting No. 5 was brokered by Sotheby's. David Martinez reportedly bought the 8' x 4' piece of fibreboard, covered in drips of brown and yellow paint from Dreamworks co-founder David Geffen for $140 million, or £89 million, in November 2006. The New York Times reported the sale, but Martinez's law firm later issued a statement saying he did not own it. The above image is of Pollock's No. 4 painting, which sold in Sotheby's for £25 million.

Woman III, Willem de Kooning (£88.3 million)

In 2006, hedge fund Steven A. Cohen bought one of Dutch painter de Kooning's "Woman" series for approximately $137.5 million from super collector and head of Geffen Records, David Geffen.

Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I, Gustav Klimt (£85.7 million)

Cosmetics magnate Ronald S. Lauder broke the record for the highest sum ever paid for a painting in July 2006 when he paid $135 million (£85.7 million) for Gustav Klimt's 1907 work, Portrait of Adele Block- Bauer 1. Again, this is a price gauged by experts close to the deal, as Mr Lauder was forbidden from revealing the price, which was negotiated by Christie's.

The Scream, Edvard Munch (£76.3 million)

Edvard Munch's expressionist masterpiece was bought by an anonymous buyer for $120 million (£76.3 million) at Sotheby's New York in 2012. The painting's previous owner was businessman Petter Olsen, who acquired it as his father was a friend of Munch's. Bidding lasted just 12 minutes and the work had a starting price of $40 million.

Garcon a la Pipe, Pablo Picasso (£66.1 million)

Picasso's charming portrait was at the centre of a telephone bidding war at Sotheby's in 2004, and was finally sold for $104.1 million. The painting was sold by the collectors and gallerists John Hay Whitney and Betsey Cushing Roosevelt Whitney. The influence of this pair in the art world is thought to have boosted the price of the painting.

Portrait of Dr Gachet, Vincent van Gogh (£52.4 million)

Van Gogh's portrait of the medic who cared for him in the final months of his life broke records when it was sold in 1990 for $82.5 million. The portrait was bought by a Tokyo art dealer on behalf of Japanese industrialist Ryoei Saito. However, when Saito died in debt, the painting disappeared into the international art market and its whereabouts remain unknown.

Bal du Moulin de la Galette, Pierre-Auguste Renoir (£49.6 million)

Sold in 1990, Renoir's depiction of Sunday afternoon jollity in Paris's Montmartre reached $78.1 million at an auction held at Sotheby's. As the painting was also bought by the controversial Japanese industrialist Ryoei Saito, its whereabouts are also unknown after Saito's death. It is thought to be in the hands of a Swiss collector.

Source: The Telegraph