Brâncusi's “Danaida”, sold for an enormous sum in New York, the second highest price in history for a sculpture
The work “Danaida” by Constantin Brâncusi was sold for a record sum for the Romanian sculptor in a spectacular auction at Christie's in New York, where new records were also reached for other great artists, such as the American painter Jackson Pollock and the Catalan Joan Miró.
The “Danaida/Danaïde” sculpture, a bronze head with brown patina and gold leaf made by Brâncusi in 1913, was sold for $107.6 million after being promoted this month including a clip featuring the famous American actress Nicole Kidman, who visited Christie's headquarters in Rockefeller Center in New York.
The story of Danaid has its origins in Antiquity, from Greek mythology and Ovid to Auguste Rodin. Brâncuși, who had previously worked as an apprentice in the sculptor Rodin's studio, depicts in the sculpture Margit Pogany, the young Hungarian artist who was his muse.
The previous record for a work by Brâncusi dates from 2018, when “La jeune fille sophistiquée” (Portrait of Nancy Cunard) sold for $71.2 million.
The price it has now reached is the second highest ever paid for a sculpture at auction and brings Brâncusi into the ranks of artists sold for 9-figure prices.
The record is held by a 1947 work by Alberto Giacometti, which sold for $141.3 million at Christie's in 2015.
Also records for other artists at the New York auction
With drips, flowing paint and black curves accentuated by touches of red on a raw canvas more than three meters wide, “Number 7A, 1948” by Jackson Pollock (1912-1956) sold for $181.2 million, including commissions, according to AFP.
According to the specialist publication ARTnews, this is the fourth most expensive work ever sold at auction.
The abstract expressionist painter's previous record at auction was $61.2 million, set in 2021. Other works by him have sold through private transactions, reaching as much as $200 million.
“No. 15 (Two Greens and Red Stripe)” (1964) by Mark Rothko (1903-1970) fetched $98.4 million, and “Portrait of Madame K.” by Joan Miró (1893-1983) was sold for $53.5 million.
The previous records for the American artist ($86.9 million) and the Catalan ($37 million) were set in 2012.
