Matisse Record Eclipsed at Christie’s

Henri Matisse
"L’Odalisque, harmonie bleue" (1937)
$33,641,000
Est. $15–20 million

After the sale, auctioneer Christopher Burge described the evening’s action as “fast and furious.” He must not have been thinking of the bidding for this exquisite Matisse odalisque from 1937, which as it drew to its close had the pacing of a long-distance turtle race, with an anonymous phone bidder and New York dealer Franck Giraud carefully deliberating their every move. The phone bidder eventually won the auction with a bid well above Matisse’s previous auction record, earning the evening’s heartiest applause.

© Christie's Images Ltd. 2007