R574m Picasso sale paints Art Basel red

Art Basel made a splashy debut this week despite global turbulence, with an eight-figure sale for a Picasso during an invite-only VIP preview, and a David Hockney fetching $8.5 million (about R139 million).

- 

The flagship fair in the Swiss city brings together 290 galleries from 43 countries and territories and is one of the top events for contemporary art sales.

It opened to the public yesterday after two days reserved for wealthy collectors.

On Tuesday, a 1963 painting by Pablo Picasso, Le peintre et son modele dans un paysage, sold for $35 million (about R574 million) by Zurich gallery Hauser & Wirth.

Basel Exclusive, a new initiative encouraging galleries to reserve significant works for their first public presentation at the fair, made its debut this year and saw another Picasso fetching between $6 million and $6.5 million for French gallery Almine Rech, according to the organisers.