Alan Albegov

"Card Players". $250 000 000

Gambler Paul Cezanne

Even before the emir from Qatar obtained the Gauguin painting, in 2011 he bought the work of Paul Cezanne “The Card Players”, which was created by 1892-1893 “Card Players” was part of a cycle of five entries. Until 2015, the painting remains the most expensive painting in the world that has been offered for sale in the past one and a half centuries.

"Number 5". Jackson Pollock. $140 000 000

Number 5, 1948 is a painting by Jackson Pollock, an American painter known for his contributions to the abstract expressionist movement. The painting was done on an 8' x 4' sheet of fiberboard, with thick amounts of brown and yellow paint drizzled on top of it, forming a nest-like appearance. It was originally owned by Samuel Irving Newhouse, Jr. and displayed at the Museum of Modern Art before being sold to David Geffen and then allegedly to David Martinez in 2006 (though the supposed sale of this painting to Martinez has been denied by his attorneys). According to a report in The New York Times on November 2, 2006, the painting was sold by David Geffen, founder of Geffen Records and co-founder of Dreamworks SKG, to David Martinez, managing partner of Fintech Advisory Ltd, in a private sale for a record inflation-adjusted price of $140 million. The sale was reportedly brokered by Sotheby's auctioneer Tobias Meyer, however, the law firm of Shearman & Sterling, LLP, issued a press release on behalf of its client, David Martinez, to announce that contrary to recent articles in the press, Martinez does not own the painting or any rights to acquire it. It is speculated that Geffen sold the painting, along with two others, to raise enough funds to bid for the Los Angeles Times. Martinez has reportedly been amassing an art collection, buying multiple modern artworks in recent years. This sale would make the painting the second most expensive ever sold, privately or at auction, exceeding the sale of Gustav Klimt's 1907 Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I to Ronald Lauder, heir to the EsteeLauder Companies fortune, by around five million dollars, trailing only the sale of The Card Players of Paul Cezanne to the Royal Family of Qatar reportedly for between $250 to $300 million. David Cook, deputy director of painting at Sotheby's Australia, stated that the price of Pollock's paintings will continually rise in value, as very few of Pollock's paintings are still left. Cook has also stated that another of Pollock's paintings, Blue Poles, is worth at least 180 million AUD and possibly even more than Number 5, 1948. In addition to the refutation issued by Shearman & Sterling, the auction expert Josh Baer indicated that Martinez was not the buyer of the painting.

"Woman III". Willem de Kooning, $137 500 000.

Woman III is one of a series of six paintings by de Kooning done between 1951 and 1953 in which the central theme was a woman. It measures 68 by 48 1/2 inches (1.73 by 1.23 m) and was completed in 1953.In November 2006, the painting was sold by Geffen to billionaire Steven A. Cohen for $137.5 million, making it the third most expensive painting ever sold. Mr. Cohen bought the 1952-53 oil on canvas, Woman III, directly from the entertainment magnate and megacollector David Geffen, who in the last two months has emerged as equally prolific in selling his contemporary masterpieces. It is the last painting in de Kooning's "Women" series still in private hands. "This is arguably the most important postwar painting that is not in a museum," Sandy Heller, an art adviser to Mr. Cohen, said yesterday. "We were in the right place at the right time. It's our good fortune." Mr. Cohen, 50, has amassed a vast collection over the last six years that ranges from a Manet self-portrait to one of Jackson Pollock's classic drip paintings to Damien Hirst's infamous shark submerged in a tank of formaldehyde. Only last month he purchased a different de Kooning from Mr. Geffen, a 1955 landscape titled "Police Gazette," for $63.5 million. Mr. Geffen, who has been collecting art for decades, is known to have raised about $421 million in four private art sales since the beginning of October. The rapid-fire deals have fueled speculation that he is considering a bid for The Los Angeles Times. In October, he sold False Start, 1959 of Jasper Johns to Kenneth C. Griffin, managing director and chief executive of the Chicago-based Citadel Investment Group, for $80 million. More recently he sold No. 5, 1948 of Jackson Pollock for $140 million to the financier David Martinez, experts familiar with the transaction have reported. (Last week Mr. Martinez denied through his law firm, Shearman & Sterling, that he had bought the painting, but art world experts have repeatedly reaffirmed that he was the buyer.) Mr. Heller said the price tag for "Woman III" was $137.5 million and that the sale was brokered by the Manhattan dealer Larry Gagosian. It is unclear whether that price included Mr. Gagosian's commission. If a commission were still to be added to that figure, "Woman III" could possibly have fetched the highest price on record for a painting. The current known record was set this month when Mr. Geffen sold the Pollock for $140 million. The female figure was a theme to which de Kooning returned repeatedly. He began painting women regularly in the early 1940s and did so again later in that decade and more seriously in the 1950s. Often they are depicted in an almost graffitilike style, with gigantic, vacuous eyes, massive breasts, toothy smiles and clawlike hands set against colorful layers of paint. Because Mr. Cohen is known as a supporter of both the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum, his purchase is likely to stir speculation about whether "Woman III" will one day go to a museum.

"Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I" . Gustav Klimt, $135 000 000.

The picture with a deep story in which love, hate, betrayal and revenge are mixed. Adele's husband got her lover, Gustav Klimt (for a decent fee, of course), to paint her portrait, and make it last through the ages. While Gustav worked on the painting, his and Adele's feelings faded. Thus, the husband took revenge on the adulteress for her branchy horns.

"THE SCREAM". Edvard Munch, $119 992 000.

Painter Edvard Munch established a free-flowing, psychological-themed style all his own. His painting "The Scream" ("The Cry"; 1893), is one of the most recognizable works in the history of art. His later works proved to be less intense, but his earlier, darker paintings ensured his legacy. A testament to his importance, "The Scream" sold for more than $119 million in 2012 —s etting a new record.

"Nude, Green Leaves and Bust". Pablo Picasso. $106 482 000

What's interesting is that this one was painted in just day. The painting depicts Pablo's mistress, who was an incredible inspiration to him. Perhaps because this love was the most forbidden and therefore the sweetest.

Источник: https://cgmag.net. автор: Светлана Марчукова

Before engaging in illustration Johnny Duddle has managed to work as an encyclopaedia salesman, animator and art teacher, although his background is in art. He began his career as a freelance artist, designing characters for computer games. Later, when he became a freelancer, he wrote and illustrated several series of books for children, including ones about pirates and dinosaurs.

Cover for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Johnny Duddle was very serious about creating the first test cover for Harry Potter. In eight months he watched all the films and read all the Harry books. Some people found Johnny Duddle's illustrations too "childish," but the artist believes this is primarily due to the fact that Rupert Green and Daniel Radcliffe grew into full-fledged men during the filming, even though the book characters were no more than eighteen during the main narrative.

Professor Snape, the obnoxious potion's teacher, is Johnny Duddle's favourite. His nose had to be made more hooked at Bloomsbury's request

Dobby has a long nose and ears like a bat, because Rowling's description makes him look more vulnerable than in the films

Cover for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Santiago Caruso – Argentinean surrealist-symbolist-avant-garde artist. He is a follower of the old school: his reference point is the works of the 19th century. He considers poetry, fantasy and technique to be his main artistic emphases, but prefers darker themes. Among his works are illustrations for Ambrose Beers and Howard Phillips Lovecraft.

The intention of this illustration was for Jane to resemble a sorceress casting a spell. She is actually extending her arms in a defensive gesture, but it looks as if she is commanding a horse.

It would seem that what could an artist with such a track record and a love story like Jane Eyre have in common? But Santiago has found and shown the world a new facet of an old story. He did so in an unusual and interesting way, for instance, in the illustration above, the author tells us the following:

"Mr Brocklehurst punishes Jane in front of the whole class and inhumanely makes her stand on a stool for hours. Jane appears to me as a pillar-keeper: the stool almost turns into a pillar, on which the heroine says prayers and does penance. The idea was inspired by Fra Angelico's fresco "The Mocking of Christ": I used the same technique to show the punishment meted out to the girls for whom the Lovud School has become their new home. The bad food, the canings, the harsh control represented by the scissors over Jane's head".

"My goal is to see light and beauty even in the darkness, and so, for example, in the episode with Jane in the Red Room, this technique serves to open the way from mystery and fear to the light of true love." Santiago Caruso

Caruso read the novel twice before starting work and only then began to sketch the images in his head. Santiago used an unusual technique to create the illustrations, using ink and scratching on cardboard, resulting in something between an aquatint and an engraving.

Д’Артаньян, лорд Винтер, Портос, Арамис и Атос приговаривают Миледи к смертной казни

По иллюстрациям к «Д’Артаньяну и трём мушкетёрам» может быть совершенно непонятно, за что Дениса Гордеева невзлюбили поклонники Толкина и Сапковского. Однако если обратиться к иллюстрациям художника по «Ведьмаку» и Средиземью становится очевидно, что претензии к тому, что все без исключения персонажи у него являются счастливыми обладателями лица Мика Джаггера не так уж и надуманны. Справедливости ради стоит отметить, что возмущаются не все, многих иллюстрации Гордеева вполне устраивают. Так же стоит сказать, что Денис Гордеев не первый художник в семье, первым был его отец. Художественное образование Гордеев младший получил основательное: вечерняя художественная школа, Московская художественная школа при Художественном институте им. В. И. Сурикова, а позднее и сам институт. Так что классическая манера, в которой выполнены все его иллюстраций, не неожиданность, а закономерное следствие.

French artist Henri Rousseau was a self-taught painter, influencing the Parisian avant-garde movement.

While working as a toll collector in Paris, Henri Rousseau taught himself to paint and exhibited his work almost annually from 1886 until the end of his life. He was given the nickname "Le Douanier" ("the customs officer") by his acquaintances in the Parisian avant-garde. Despite his connections with other artists and dealers, he never profited from his paintings; however, works like "The Dream," "The Sleeping Gypsy" and "Carnival Evening" influenced many artists who came after him.
Henri Julien Félix Rousseau was born into a middle-class family in the town of Laval in northwest France on May 21, 1844. Rousseau attended school in Laval until 1860. In his late teens, he worked for a lawyer and then enlisted in the army, although he never saw combat. In 1868, Rousseau left the army and moved to Paris, where he began working as a toll collector at the entrance to the city.

Vincent van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh was one of the world’s greatest artists, with paintings such as ‘Starry Night’ and ‘Sunflowers, though he was unknown until after his death.
Vincent van Gogh was a post-Impressionist painter whose work notable for its beauty, emotion and color highly influenced 20th-century art. He struggled with mental illness and remained poor and virtually unknown throughout his life.
The eldest of six living children, van Gogh had two younger brothers (Theo, who worked as an art dealer and supported his older brother’s art, and Cor) and three younger sisters (Anna, Elizabeth and Willemien). Theo van Gogh would later play an important role in his older brother's life as a confidant, supporter and art dealer
At age 15, van Gogh's family was struggling financially, and he was forced to leave school and go to work. He got a job at his Uncle Cornelis' art dealership, Goupil & Cie., a firm of art dealers in The Hague. By this time, van Gogh was fluent in French, German and English, as well as his native Dutch.
In June 1873, van Gogh was transferred to the Groupil Gallery in London. There, he fell in love with English culture. He visited art galleries in his spare time, and also became a fan of the writings of Charles Dickens and George Eliot.
He also fell in love with his landlady's daughter, Eugenie Loyer. When she rejected his marriage proposal, van Gogh suffered a breakdown. He threw away all his books except for the Bible, and devoted his life to God. He became angry with people at work, telling customers not to buy the "worthless art," and was eventually fired.
Van Gogh then taught in a Methodist boys' school, and also preached to the congregation. Although raised in a religious family, it wasn't until this time that he seriously began to consider devoting his life to the church
Hoping to become a minister, he prepared to take the entrance exam to the School of Theology in Amsterdam. After a year of studying diligently, he refused to take the Latin exams, calling Latin a "dead language" of poor people, and was subsequently denied entrance.
The same thing happened at the Church of Belgium: In the winter of 1878, van Gogh volunteered to move to an impoverished coal mine in the south of Belgium, a place where preachers were usually sent as punishment. He preached and ministered to the sick, and also drew pictures of the miners and their families, who called him "Christ of the Coal Mines."
The evangelical committees were not as pleased. They disagreed with van Gogh's lifestyle, which had begun to take on a tone of martyrdom. They refused to renew van Gogh's contract, and he was forced to find another occupation.
Finding Solace in Art
In the fall of 1880, van Gogh decided to move to Brussels and become an artist. Though he had no formal art training, his brother Theo offered to support van Gogh financially. He began taking lessons on his own, studying books like Travaux des champs by Jean-François Millet and Cours de dessin by Charles Bargue. Van Gogh's art helped him stay emotionally balanced. In 1885, he began work on what is considered to be his first masterpiece, "Potato Eaters." Theo, who by this time living in Paris, believed the painting would not be well-received in the French capital, where Impressionism had become the trend. Nevertheless, van Gogh decided to move to Paris, and showed up at Theo's house uninvited. In March 1886, Theo welcomed his brother into his small apartment. In Paris, van Gogh first saw Impressionist art, and he was inspired by the color and light. He began studying with Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Camille Pissarro and others. To save money, he and his friends posed for each other instead of hiring models. Van Gogh was passionate, and he argued with other painters about their works, alienating those who became tired of his bickering.

Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo's father, a German photographer, recognised his daughter's artistic talent when she was a little girl. The man decided to teach his daughter photography, hiring a printmaker friend to give her informal training in graphic arts. Young Kahlo was aiming for medical school. Unfortunately, both her apprenticeship and education were cut short when she was the victim of a near-fatal car accident at the age of 18. Her father then gave the girl a bespoke easel with a mirror so that she could observe herself, which led to self-portraits and observation of her own anatomy. Consequently, as she developed her style, Kahlo found herself drawn to personal expression. She began to combine modern formal devices with Mexican folk traditions and distinctive images of Catholic culture created by untrained artists.

Thornton Dial

Thornton Dial was born in 1928 as the heir to a family of poor black sharecroppers in Alabama. He did not attend school until he was 13, and even then he was embarrassed to be a secondgrader. Large for his age and accustomed to hard physical labour, Dial began skipping school to work and earn money. As an adult, he worked in a railway carriage factory until it closed in 1981, after which he began art. His early experience of manual labour formed the basis of Dial's self-education in materials and techniques. "My art is a testament to my freedom," Dial said in an interview in the mid-1990s. - "When I start any piece, I can take whatever I want to create a creation. I start with the things that best fit my idea." Thornton Dial was an acute diagnostician of the systematic ills he saw in American society. Themes of racism and poverty regularly surface in his work through materials and titles that reference political events, historical sites and Christian scripture.

Paul Gauguin

French post-Impressionist artist Paul Gauguin was an important figure in the Symbolist art movement of the early 1900s. His use of bold colors, exaggerated body proportions and stark contrasts in his paintings set him apart from his contemporaries, helping to pave the way for the Primitivism art movement. Gauguin often sought exotic environments and spent time living and painting in Tahiti. Famed French artist Gauguin, born in Paris on June 7, 1848, created his own unique painting style, much like he crafted his own distinctive path through life. Known for bold colors, simplified forms and strong lines, he didn't have any art formal training. Gauguin instead followed his own vision, abandoning both his family and artistic conventions. Gauguin was born in Paris, but his family moved to Peru when he was a young child. His journalist father died on the journey to South America. Eventually returning to France, Gauguin took to the seas as a merchant marine. He was also in the French Navy for a time and then worked as a stockbroker. In 1873, he married a Danish woman named Mette Gad. The couple eventually had five children together. Gauguin began painting in his spare time but quickly became serious about his hobby. One of his works was accepted into the "Salon of 1876," an important art show in Paris. Gauguin met artist Camille Pissarro around this time, and his work attracted the interest of the Impressionists. The Impressionists were a group of revolutionary artists who challenged traditional methods and subjects and had been largely rejected by the French art establishment. Gauguin was invited to show at the group's fourth exhibition in 1879, and his work appeared among the works of Pissarro, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet and other artistic greats. By 1883, Gauguin had stopped working as a stockbroker so that he could fully devote himself to his art. He also soon parted ways from his wife and children, and eventually went to Brittany, France. In 1888, Gauguin created one of his most famous paintings, "Vision of the Sermon." The boldly colored work showed the Biblical tale of Jacob wrestling with the angel. The following year, Gauguin painted "The Yellow Christ," a striking portrayal of the crucifixion of Jesus.

Kieron Williams

An English autodidact prodigy who started painting in the Impressionist style at the age of 5 and at 8 put his paintings up for auction for the first time. At 13, he sold 33 of his paintings for $235,000 in half an hour at an auction, and today (he is already 18) he is a dollar millionaire. Kieron paints six paintings a week and his work is constantly lined up. He simply has no time for education.