A bewitching portrait of one of Modigliani’s favorite models, ‘Elvire en buste’ from 1918 made its auction debut during The Paris Sales today, presented by CELINE and, in doing so, set a new French record for a painting by the artist.
Unseen for the last 50 years, the work has been held in the same private collection since 1974. In the first ever appearance of a portrait of Elvire by Modigliani at auction, spirited competition between 7 bidders in the #SothebysParis salesroom drove the final price to €27 million / $31.3 million against an estimate of €5.5-7.5 million.
The Paris Sales today brought a combined total of €89.7 million / $104 million, with this stunning portrait becoming the most valuable work of art ever sold at Sotheby’s Paris.
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