Top 10 most expensive paintings

Here we have a fine compilation of the most expensive and controversial paintings of all times,
listed according to the respective sales prices. The year of sale, the name of the seller, and the
name of the buyer are indicated. And as is to be expected, all the great names, from Picasso to
Warhol and from Pollock to Van Gogh, are showcased here for you to enjoy - some even several
times.

The world of art collectors is bizarre and we will never know for sure why one could or even
should spend a surprising and staggering amount money for an oil painting of some random
gentlemen playing a card game!

Nevertheless, it is interesting to see which works of art from which artists in the history of
mankind to this day left an indelible mark of awe or left an unanswerable mystery in the world
of art collection!

10. $105.4 million. Silver Car Crash (Double Disaster) by Andy Warhol, 1932

The most expensive work by the legend of Pop Art himself, Andy Warhol’s monumental “Silver
Car Crash“ was the star of the contemporary art evening sale at Sotheby’s.

9. $106.5 million. Nude, Green Leaves and Bust by Pablo Picasso, 1932

This sensual and colorful masterpiece is the most expensive work by Picasso ever sold at an
auction. The work, formerly in the collection of Mrs. Sidney F. Brody, has never been exhibited in
public since 1961.

8. $110 million. Flag by Jasper Johns, 1958

“Flags“ is Jasper Johns most famous works. The artist painted his first American flag in 1954–55,
a work now at the MoMA.

7. $119.9 million. The Scream by Edvard Munch, 1895

This iconic work was the most expensive painting ever sold at an auction until it was surpassed
by Bacon’s “Three Studies of Lucian Freud“. The work is the most colorful of the four versions of
Edvard Munch’s masterpiece, “The Scream“, and the only one still in private hands.

6. $135,000,000. Gustav Klimt – Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I

This was sold by Maria Altmann, who – after a lengthy and complicated court battle – was
deemed rightful owner of this work of art and several others. Altmann was named as an inheritor
of the painting in by the will of the widowed husband of the model herself, despite the efforts of
the Austrian State, as Adele Bloch-Bauer had originally left the painting to the State Gallery in her
own will. The painting was bought by Ronald Lauder for the Neue Galerie in New York to be the
centerpiece of a collection of Jewish-owned art rescued from the Nazi looting that took place in
the Second World War.

5. $137,500,000. Willem de Kooning – Woman III

Another painting sold by Geffen in 2006, but this time bought by billionaire Steven A. Cohen. It is
a part of a series of 6 painted by none other than de Kooning himself in the period of 1951-53,
which revolved around the theme of a woman, and is allegedly the only installment of the
Woman series still in private hands.

4. $140,000,000. Jackson Pollock – No.5, 1948

The New York Times claimed that this painting was sold by David Geffen (of Geffen Records), to
David Martinez (managing partner of Fintech Advisory). However, a press release issued in behalf
of Martinez states that he did not actually purchase the painting. Therefore, the truth is still
shrouded in mystery to this day, and it can only be rumored that the piece has been sold for a
record-breaking $140 million!

3. $142,4 million. Three Studies of Lucian Freud by Francis Bacon, 1969

This piece is not only the most expensive painting ever auctioned, but also a record for the most
expensive contemporary works of art ever sold! It was made known that when this work was
painted, the relationship between Freud and Bacon was at its apex.

2. $155 million. La Rêve (The Dream) by Pablo Picasso, 1932

“La Rêve (The Dream)“ is one of Picasso’s most sensual and famous paintings, depicting her lover
Marie-Therese Walter sitting on a red armchair with her eyes closed. In 2006, Steve Wynn agreed
to sell the painting to Steven Cohen for $139 million, but the sale was unfortunately cancelled
when Mr. Wynn accidentally damaged the expensive work of art. Such a waste!

1. $250 million. The Card Players by Paul Cézanne,2011.

The exact price of “The Card Players” (even the currency of sale) is shrouded in mystery; with an
estimate ranging from $259 million to $320 million! “The Card Players” is part of a series of oil
paintings by the French Post-Impressionist artist Paul Cézanne. This insanely expensive work of
art was painted during Cézanne’s final period in the early 1890s. There are five paintings in the
series. Keep in mind though that the Royal Family of Qatar didn’t buy the series – they only
bought this painting for a staggering price ranging from $259 million to $320 million! Critics
consider the series to be a cornerstone of Cézanne’s art during the early-to-mid 1890s period, as
well as a prelude to his final years, when he painted some of his most acclaimed work. The models
for the paintings were local farm hands, some of whom worked in the Cézanne family estate, the
Jas de Bouffan.