Sotheby’s forthcoming Contemporary Art Evening Sale will be highlighted by Jean-Michel Basquiat’s early masterpiece, Untitled (Pecho/Oreja), 1982-83. The work will be offered on Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 and comes from the joint collection of Irish rock band U2. It is estimated at £4-6 million.

The painting was first spotted by U2’s bassist Adam Clayton at the Robert Miller Gallery in New York. The band acquired Untitled in 1989, and it has since resided in their Dublin studio.

Oliver Barker, Senior Specialist, Sotheby’s Contemporary Art department, said: “It seems especially appropriate that a work by Basquiat should end up at a music studio, since so much has been said about the relationship between his art and music.”

In May 2007, Sotheby’s established a world record at auction for Jean-Michel Basquiat when it sold Untitled, a masterpiece dating from 1981, for $14.6 million in New York. Since then, the company has offered further outstanding works by the artist including Untitled (Electric Chair), 1981-82, which sold for $11.8 million in November 2007, and Untitled (Prophet I) from the same period, which sold for $9.5 million in May 2008

Posted: 06|17|08 at 8:47 am. Filed under: UK News.