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| Freud work sets new world record | Freud work sets new world record |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| A life-sized Lucian Freud painting of a sleeping, naked woman has set a new world record price for a work by a living artist. | |
| The 1995 portrait, entitled Benefits Supervisor Sleeping, sold for $33.6 million (£17.2 million). | The 1995 portrait, entitled Benefits Supervisor Sleeping, sold for $33.6 million (£17.2 million). |
| The sale, held by auction house Christie's, took place at the Rockefeller Center, New York. | |
| The previous record was held by Jeff Koons' Hanging Heart, which fetched $23.5 million (£12.1 million). | The previous record was held by Jeff Koons' Hanging Heart, which fetched $23.5 million (£12.1 million). |
| The painting, appearing at an auction for the first time, depicts Jobcentre supervisor Sue Tilley, now 51, sleeping on a dilapidated sofa. | The painting, appearing at an auction for the first time, depicts Jobcentre supervisor Sue Tilley, now 51, sleeping on a dilapidated sofa. |
| Christie's described the work as a "bold and imposing example of the stark power of Freud's realism". | Christie's described the work as a "bold and imposing example of the stark power of Freud's realism". |
| Ms Tilley, nicknamed "Big Sue", was introduced to the painter, now 85, by the Australian performance artist Leigh Bowery. | Ms Tilley, nicknamed "Big Sue", was introduced to the painter, now 85, by the Australian performance artist Leigh Bowery. |
| She posed for Freud for four years in the early 1990s, and has said in the past of being his muse: "I think he probably picked me because he got value for money. He got a lot of flesh." | She posed for Freud for four years in the early 1990s, and has said in the past of being his muse: "I think he probably picked me because he got value for money. He got a lot of flesh." |
| The previous auction record as far as a Freud painting is concerned was $19.3 million (£9.9 million), set in November 2007 for his 1992 work IB and Her Husband. | The previous auction record as far as a Freud painting is concerned was $19.3 million (£9.9 million), set in November 2007 for his 1992 work IB and Her Husband. |