"Le Violon d'Ingres", the most expensive photograph in history

May 14, 2022 at 11:51 hrs.
Le Violon d'Ingres (1924) by Man Ray. Source: Valutazione Arte
Le Violon d'Ingres (1924) by Man Ray. Source: Valutazione Arte

 

"Le Violon d'Ingres" (1924) of Man Ray, a famous photograph showing a nude woman's back overlaid with the f-holes of a violin, sold for $12,4 million on Saturday, setting a record for the most expensive photograph ever sold at auction.

The sale came after a prolonged bidding period that lasted almost 10 minutes during the auction of Christie's New York dedicated to surreal art.

The iconic print photography of Ray, who represents his muse Kiki of Montparnasse, is rare because it is considered an original photographic print.

Man Ray achieved the photograph around the time its corresponding negative was first produced, making it valuable in the eyes of the photography experts.

Directed by the auctioneer Adrien meyer, the two bidders Darius Himes and Elodie Morel argued over the vintage edition.

Eventually, after bids rose to unforeseen heights, the rare print fetched a price of $10.5 million, drawing applause from those watching the auction, which eventually went to Himes' bidder and far surpassed his high estimate of $7. millions.

Prior to the sale, Himes called the work "unprecedented on the market".

The result surpassed the previous auction record for a photograph by a factor of three times, set in 2011 when the landscape Rhine II of 1999 from Andreas Gurski was sold in Christie's for 4,3 million dollars.

The sale also broke the previous record for a photograph of Man Ray, which was established in 2017 when an original edition of Black and White (1926) sold for $3 million during an auction of Christie's en Paris.

Man Ray, pseudonym of Emmanuel Radnitzky was born in 1890 and died on November 18, 1976 in Paris France. He was a key member of the movements Dadaist y surreal and his "Le Violon d'Ingres" is the best lot offered from the collection of Rosalind Gersten Jacobs y melvin jacobs, retail executives, and art collectors who had ties to the surreal circles.

According to the auction house, the couple New York acquired the piece from Ray in 1962.

 

 

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