Blog de Broas:

Some days ago I went to cinema to see the movie “Seraphine”. The movie is about the life of a French painter
Séraphine Louis, best known as Séraphine de Senlis. Her artwork together with the artworks from other artists like Rousseau formed the naif style.

She never studied art. She belongs from a poor family and began to work as a sheperdess, later starts working in housekeeping.

This job will have a major importance in her carrier, because the destiny will make possible that Wilhelm Uhde see her paintings when she works as his housekeeper. For Wilhelm was an amazing discovery because he didn´t know about her paintings.

The reason for his ignorance about that, was the fact of Séraphine make her paintings secretly isolated during the night after her arduous day job. Wilhelm was astonished when he discovered the author of these exotic paintings with intensive colours, and starts to finance Séraphine to stop working as housekeeper and work only in her paintings.

Many things happened during their lives, some due to the character of Séraphine, others because of the First World War, that hindered her carrier.
During her life she never got to know the success of her artworks.

In the movie Yolande Moreau is Séraphine, and she makes an extraordinary role. You´ve got to see this movie. It´s an amazing story. This movie won several César Awards, seven Césars, including best film and best actress.

1. JACKSON POLLOCK – $140 million
Number 5, 1948, 1948
Seller: David Geffen. Buyer: David Martínez

number 5

The most expensive painting ever made is from the american artist. It is curious because the USA are the most rich nation at this time. And the art made by Pollock is also contemporary art.

2. WILLEM DE KOONING – $137.5 million
Woman III, 1952-53
Seller: David Geffen. Buyer: Steven Cohen

woman III

This is one of the most famous paintings made by the abstract expressionist from Dutchland. An almost beautiful picture!! Art don´t need to be beautiful to being good art.

3. GUSTAV KLIMT – $135 million
Adele Bloch-Bauer I, 1907
Buyer: Ronald Lauder

adele bloch bauer I

It could be more expensive than others paintings because the painting is composed by paint and gold.

4. PABLO PICASSO – $104.1 million
Garçon a la pipe, 1904
Buyer: Ronald Lauder

Garçon a la pipe

“Garçon a la pipe” is one of the most beautiful paintings made by Picasso, and is from his rose period.

5. DAMIEN HIRST – $100 million
For the Love of God
Buyer: Anonymous investors

for the love of god

Damien Hirst is the most expensive living artist, and probably one of the most controversial. The skull it´s probably the piece on this list that used more money to be done.

6. PABLO PICASSO – $95.2 million
Dora Maar Au Chat, 1941
Buyer: Anonymous

dora maar

Another painting made by Picasso, not so beautiful has the other one, but a very nice artwork too.

7. GUSTAV KLIMT – $87.9 million
Adele Bloch-Bauer II, 1912
Buyer: unknown

adele-bloch-bauer2

The second painting made by Klimt in the list, and the second painting with Adele Bloch-Baur, the only model painted by Klimt twice.

8. FRANCIS BACON – $86.3 million
Tryptich, 1976
Buyer: European private

tryptich

Francis Bacon is an artist that I appreciate, and is a pity he don´t be alive anymore.

9. VINCENT VAN GOGH – $82.5 million
Portrait of Doctor Gachet, 1890
Buyer: Ryoei Saito

portrait of Dr.Gauchet

There are always a place for a crazy one. but a nice artist too.

10. JASPER JOHN – $80 million
False Start, 1959
Buyer: Unknown

false start

Jasper Jonhs, once more an american artist on the list, and from a very good moment in art, pop art. I just don´t know why Jasper Jonhs is most expensive than Warhol

Gerard Richter is one of the most expensive artists of our time and he deserve it. Why? He is one of the most important artist for the art of our days.
His works reflected about all subjects in painting in a spectacular way, like Picasso did in his time. His work is immense and has a wide range of variety and imagination.

So, I want to share with you a funny case about richter´s work, about the work that he made to the Cologne cathedral. He was invited to make a stained glass window to substitute the old one that was destroyed in World War II.

He used the same idea of his series of works “colour charts” for the stained glass window, that appear to be abstract paintings but, in reality, they are figurative paintings. The catholic religion don´t accept the abstract images, their ideology defend the figurative images. The muslims believe in the opposite, they don´t have faith in figurative images. They refuse the materialization of their saints.

Under these assumptions, Cardinal Joachim Meisner has been critical of richter´s stained glass window, and reportedly would have preferred a more traditionally figurative subject, he also said that Richter´s work seemed more fit for a mosque.

With these pronounced words, Joachim Meisner shows his few knowledge about art, about art subjects, and the most important, about the art made by the artist hired by the Catholic church to do the stained glass.

Can we talk about abstract painting in our days?

stained glass II