Magritte’s ‘The Empire of Light’ sells for a record $121M at auction in New York

NEW YORK– An eerie nighttime street scene under a light blue sky during the day at the Belgian surreal René Magritte was sold at auction in New York for $121.2 million, a record for the artist.

The painting, ‘The Empire of Light’, was sold on Tuesday as part of Christie’s sale of the collection of interior designer Mica Ertegun, who died last year at the age of 97.

Sales are increasing Magritte among the ranks of artists whose works have sold for more than $100 million at auction. According to the market analyst firm, Magritte is the sixteenth member of the club that also includes Leonardo da Vinci, Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol. Art Prize.

The work sold on Tuesday, made in 1954, was one of seventeen versions of the same scene that Magritte painted in oil. Marc Porter, chairman of Christie’s Americas, called the sale “a historic moment in our sales space.”

The $121.2 million price includes auction house fees. The buyer was a telephone bidder whose identity was not disclosed.

New York’s fall auctions continue Wednesday with Sotheby’s sale of contemporary art, including Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan’s conceptual piece “Comedian.” It consists of a banana stuck to a wall.