Warhol's Jackson Portrait Could Set Record

NBC New York ^ | Mon, Aug 17, 2009 | EMILY FELDMAN

[nickcarraway]

Hamptons gallery planned auction before M.J. death

A portrait of the king of pop, painted by the king of pop art has hit the auction blocks, and may pull in record bids.

The Hamptons' Vered Gallery, which will hand the painting to the highest bidder Tuesday, calls Andy Warhol's "The King of POP, MICHAEL JACKSON," "the greatest work to come to auction," due in part to incredible timing.

The gallery planned the auction and set the $800,000 starting price before news broke of Jackson's death. Now, the final sale price could jump tenfold.

Time magazine commissioned the artwork in 1984, when Michael Jackson, then 25, was at the height of his career, and becoming an international icon. Warhol completed 5 Jackson portraits, one of which made the cover of the magazine and eventually landed in The National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C.

If the past is any indication of what an iconic Warhol painting might yield, prospective bidders may want to consult past auction prices.

Warhol's highest selling portrait to date, "Lemon Marilyn"--a portrait of another international icon--pulled in $28,040,000 at a 2007 Christies Auction.

"Green car crash -- Green burning car," broke the record for highest selling Warhol painting at the same auction, selling for $71,720,000.

The Vered Gallery says that they have already received numerous bids for the Jackson portrait.

[nickcarraway]

I'm waiting for the Salvador Dali portrait of Jackson

[bareford101]

if it isn’t on black velvet, they can count me out!!!

[freedomson]

It stinks.

[Political Junkie Too]

How about the Jackson Five Playing Poker?

-PJ

[JoeProBono]

While Andy Warhol might be more famous for painting car crashes with his "Death and Disaster" series, he also, on occasion, fancied a car intact. When French racecar driver Hervé Poulain decided his beloved BMWs might make excellent canvases, he first asked mobile-maker

[Maverick68]

Warhol=fraud...
Avant-garde is French for “pretentious bull shpt....”

[blackminorca]

well at least it looks a little like something - not just squiggly lines and blotches of bs.

Now this is what I call painting - super realism.

http://web.mac.com/hollingsworthjames/neilart/Machines.html

[MotleyGirl70]

I was a huge Michael Jackson fan during his Thriller years so I like it.

Warhol painted that during his normal years.

Insane as it is I bet it goes for over $100 million.

[nickcarraway]

I’d take the picture of him with Ron and Nancy, instead.

[MotleyGirl70]

Didn't know there was one of President Reagan and Nancy.

I'm off to Google it right now.