This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/uk/7617878.stm
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Hirst auction beats £62m estimate | Hirst auction beats £62m estimate |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| An auction of art works by Damien Hirst has smashed a top estimate of £62.3m to bring in a record total of £70.5m - with more works still to be sold. | |
| The artist has abandoned the traditional method of selling through dealers and galleries, going straight to the auction house Sotheby's instead. | The artist has abandoned the traditional method of selling through dealers and galleries, going straight to the auction house Sotheby's instead. |
| It is the first time an artist has sold a substantial body of work this way. | It is the first time an artist has sold a substantial body of work this way. |
| Sotheby's say the auction - which runs over two days - has set a new record for a sale dedicated to one artist. | Sotheby's say the auction - which runs over two days - has set a new record for a sale dedicated to one artist. |
| - Among the lots were The Golden Calf for £9.2m and The Kingdom - a tiger shark in formaldehyde - which sold for £9.6m. | - Among the lots were The Golden Calf for £9.2m and The Kingdom - a tiger shark in formaldehyde - which sold for £9.6m. |
| The auction, entitled Beautiful Inside My Head Forever, was the first of three that will sell a total of 223 art works by Mr Hirst. | The auction, entitled Beautiful Inside My Head Forever, was the first of three that will sell a total of 223 art works by Mr Hirst. |
| The Golden Calf, which is placed in a gold case, was estimated to sell for between £8m and £12m. | The Golden Calf, which is placed in a gold case, was estimated to sell for between £8m and £12m. |
| Pickled shark | Pickled shark |
| But the work entitled The Kingdom, which was bought for £9.6m, had been estimated at between £4m and £6m. | But the work entitled The Kingdom, which was bought for £9.6m, had been estimated at between £4m and £6m. |
| The Black Sheep with the Golden Horn, another animal in formaldehyde, sold for £2.6m, within its £2-3m estimate. | The Black Sheep with the Golden Horn, another animal in formaldehyde, sold for £2.6m, within its £2-3m estimate. |
| The second and third sessions are due to take place on Tuesday morning and afternoon. | The second and third sessions are due to take place on Tuesday morning and afternoon. |
| The extraordinary body of new work to be showcased at Sotheby's is among his best yet Sotheby's spokesman In Pictures: Hirst for art | The extraordinary body of new work to be showcased at Sotheby's is among his best yet Sotheby's spokesman In Pictures: Hirst for art |
| Mr Hirst has called the auction a "mini retrospective" and "probably the most amazing show I've put on". | Mr Hirst has called the auction a "mini retrospective" and "probably the most amazing show I've put on". |
| BBC Entertainment reporter David Sillito said that opting to sell all this art in the hurley-burley of the sale room is an unusual move, but that the artist says galleries can be snobby and elitist. | BBC Entertainment reporter David Sillito said that opting to sell all this art in the hurley-burley of the sale room is an unusual move, but that the artist says galleries can be snobby and elitist. |
| A spokesman for Sotheby's said: "The extraordinary body of new work to be showcased at Sotheby's is among his best yet - ambitious, exquisite and incredibly powerful." | A spokesman for Sotheby's said: "The extraordinary body of new work to be showcased at Sotheby's is among his best yet - ambitious, exquisite and incredibly powerful." |