Francis Bacon painting auctioned for $37 million

[February 11, 2011]  LONDON (AP) -- Francis Bacon's portrait of his friend and fellow artist Lucian Freud has fetched 23 million pounds ($37 million) at a London auction.

Auctioneer Sotheby's says that the triptych, "Three Studies For A Portrait Of Lucian Freud," was bought Thursday evening by bidder who wished to remain anonymous.

The crimson-toned art work captures a distorted vision of Freud, who like Bacon was one of postwar Britain's leading artists.

The triptych was one of several works which sold at Sotheby's contemporary European art sale. Others included Salvador Dali's "Portrait de Paul Eluard," which sold for more than 13 million pounds, and a Freud self-portrait, which sold for more than 3 million pounds.

The prices include the buyer's premium.

[Associated Press]

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