Modigliani portrait sells for $42 million, capping week of London modern art sales

LONDON – The high-end art market seems to be weathering Europe’s economic storm.

A portrait by Amadeo Modigliani has sold for 26.9 million pounds ($42.1 million) at Christie’s, above its top estimate.

In all, this week’s London auctions at Christie’s and Sotheby’s netted more than 280 million pounds.

Modigliani’s 1919 portrait of his lover Jeanne Hebuterne was the highlight of Christie’s Wednesday sale of Impressionist and modern art, which raised a total of 136 million pounds.

A day earlier, Pablo Picasso’s 1932 work “Woman Sitting Near a Window” fetched 28.6 million pounds at Sotheby’s.

In total, Sotheby’s Impressionist and modern sales raised 145 million pounds.

Works by Egon Schiele and Claude Monet also commanded high prices at the week’s auctions, although some high-profile lots failed to meet their reserve prices.