No. 5, 1948
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
| No. 5, 1948 |
| Jackson Pollock, 1948 |
| Abstract |
| 8 x 4 feet |
| Private collection |
No. 5, 1948 is an abstract painting by Jackson Pollock (January 28, 1912 – August 11, 1956), an American painter known for his contributions to the abstract expressionist movement. The painting was done on an 8' x 4' sheet of fiberboard, with thick amounts of brown and yellow paint drizzled on top of it, forming a nest-like appearance.[1] It was originally owned by Samuel Irving Newhouse and displayed at the Museum of Modern Art before being sold to David Geffen and then allegedly to David Martinez in 2006.[2]
[edit] Alleged sale
According to a report in The New York Times, on November 2, 2006, the painting was sold by David Geffen, founder of Geffen Records and co-founder of Dreamworks SKG, to David Martinez, managing partner of Fintech Advisory Ltd, in a private sale for a record inflation-adjusted price of $140 million.[3] The sale was reportedly brokered by Sotheby’s auctioneer Tobias Meyer,[4] however, Shearman & Sterling, LLP issued a press release on behalf of its client, David Martinez, to announce that contrary to recent articles in the press, Mr Martinez does not own the painting or any rights to acquire it.[5] It is speculated that Geffen sold the painting, along with two others, to raise enough funds to bid for the Los Angeles Times.[2] Martinez has reportedly been amassing an art collection, buying multiple modern artworks in recent years as well as a two-floor, $54.7 million dollar apartment in the south building of the Time Warner Center.[2]
This sale would make the painting the most expensive ever sold, privately or at auction, exceeding the sale of Gustav Klimt's 1907 Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I to Ronald Lauder, heir to the Estée Lauder Companies fortune, by around five million dollars.[4] David Cook, deputy director of painting at Sotheby's Australia, stated that the price of Pollock's paintings will continually rise in value, as very few of Pollock's paintings are still left. Cook has also stated that another of Pollock's paintings, Blue Poles, is worth at least $A180 million and possibly even more than No. 5, 1948.[6]
The sale to Martinez is not confirmed. In addition to the refutation issued by Shearman & Sterling, the auction expert Josh Baer indicated that Martinez was not the buyer of the painting.[2]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ "Financier splashes out $140m for Pollock work", Post-Tribune, November 3, 2006.
- ^ a b c d Art Market Watch. Artnet (November 3, 2006). Retrieved on 2006-11-08.
- ^ "A Pollock Is Sold, Possibly for a Record Price", The New York Times, November 2, 2006.
- ^ a b "Pollock work 'earns record price'", BBC News, November 3, 2006.
- ^ "The Week in Mexico", San Diego Union-Tribune, November 12, 2006.
- ^ "Our Poles world's top-priced painting?", The Canberra Times, November 4, 2006.
