Basquiat painting sells for $110.5 million, setting record

The untitled Jean-Michel Basquiat painting.
(Image credit: Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images)

An untitled Jean-Michel Basquiat painting of a skull sold for $110.5 million at a contemporary art sale at Sotheby's Thursday night in New York, the highest price ever paid at auction for a piece by an American artist.

In 1984, the painting was purchased by the late art collectors Jerry and Emily Spiegel for $19,000. The 1982 work had a pre-sale estimate of more than $60 million, and bidding began at $57 million. A 10-minute bidding war between three parties ensued, and the artwork was ultimately purchased by Japanese art collector and entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.