Thursday

Hugh Pockets £9m For Warhol

Hugh Grant made more than £9m when he sold an Andy Warhol portrait of Dame Elizabeth Taylor at auction. The Four Weddings And A Funeral actor sold Warhol's Liz, a turquoise-background portrait of Dame Elizabeth, at Christie's auction of post-war and contemporary art at New York's Rockefeller Centre. The 1962 portrait fetched 23,561,000 dollars (£11,382,126), including the buyer's premium - five times the price Hugh paid for it in 2001. A Christie's spokeswoman said Warhol's Liz was part of the series of portraits the artist executed in the 1960s when his near-obsession with three legendary muses in his life - Dame Elizabeth, Marilyn Monroe and Jackie Kennedy - drove him to create "some of the most iconic art portraits of the 20th century". The new owner of Liz submitted his bids anonymously by telephone. Hugh, who bought Liz for 3.6 million dollars, is expected to use the profit from the sale to acquire works by newer artists. (For full source and full article click the Headline). Irish Art