Giacometti sculpture breaks world record

“L’homme au doigt” (Pointing man), a 1947 sculpture by Swiss artist Alberto Giacometti (1901-1966), has set a world record for a sculpture. The bronze figure sold for $ 141.3 million (CHF132 million) in New York on Monday night.  This was in line with the pre-sale estimate of about $ 130 million. Auction house Christie’s did not reveal the buyer of the 1.78-metre sculpture. The previous record of $ 104.3 million had been held by Giacometti’s “L’Homme qui marche I” (Walking man) since 2010.  Giacometti now appears three times in the top ten list of the most expensive piece of art ever sold (see box).  It was a record-breaking night for auction house Christie’s. An oil painting from 1955 by Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) smashed the record for the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction when it soared to $ 179.4 million.  The auction house had estimated “Les femmes d’Alger (Version O)” would sell for about $ 140 million, but several bidders competing via …
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– SWI swissinfo.ch