Could it be a coincidence that the stock market rebounded and Christie's had a great night at their postwar and contemporary art on Tuesday in New York? After the rather iffy returns after the Sotheby's auction last week mainly people were afraid that the numbers on the postwar and contemporary art auctions this week might not be so strong, especially since the contemporary is often the most volatile end of the market. No worries at Christies, they brought in $325 million, smack in the middle between the presale estimates of $271 to $373 million.

The stars of the show were a blue-and-ornange painting by Mark Rothko which sold for $34.2 million. Other top-selling artists included media darling Richard Prince, the nearly always bankable Lucian Freud and the art world's clown prince Jeff Koons whose "Blue Diamond" went for $11.8 million.

This sale even had a Hollywood angle in the form of a 1963 turquoise Andy Warhol portrait of actress Elizabeth Taylor that belonged to Hugh Grant. The painting sold for $23.6 million which was below its $25 million low estimate. Last week, Christie's had a strong night followed by a disappointing evening at Sotheby's. Judging by today's stock market dip, they just might be in for a bumpy night.

[Thanks, Lana]

Auction house Christie's big contemporary art sale in New York isn't until November 13 but the art world is already buzzing about the fact that one of Andy Warhol's iconic Liz Taylor portraits will be on the auction block. The turquoise Liz was created in 1963 and is part of Warhol's celebrity portraits that also include Marilyn Monroe and Jackie Kennedy. This work also has a celebrity owner. Actor Hugh Grant bought the painting six years ago for $3.5 million at Sotheby's in New York. He now could realize anywhere from $25 million to $35 million on his investment.