I'm no art critic, which is perhaps why I'm a little mystified by the astronomical sale of Le Bassin aux Nympheas by Claude Monet for £40,921,250, ($80,451,178) at a recent sale at Christie's London. This new sale obliterates the record set at Christie's New York in May by Monet's "Le Pont du chemin de fer a Argenteuil" which went for $41.181 million.

Le Bassin aux Nymphéas was fought for by three bidders, two on the telephone and one woman at the front of the room. The Guardian reports that at one point the woman bidder asked for more time but she eventually had the winning bid. The painting is one of Monet's large-scale Nymphéas which led to his Grandes décorations, the frieze now in the Musée de l'Orangerie, Paris. Dated 1919, when Monet signed the picture and sold it with three sister-works, Le bassin aux nymphéas is one of the tiny handful of pictures from this period that he sold.

As the Guardian article mentioned, quoting art expert Charles Dupplin, right now the art market is an interesting spot. Records are being smashed all over the place while the middle section of the market appears to be sagging. This mimics in some ways the state of the entire luxury market which has remained robust at the ultra high end but has shown serious weakness in the lower and middle ranges.

Earlier this week I mentioned the contemporary art auctions and the high price commanded by American artist Richard Prince for one of his paintings. Now art lovers can check out Prince's latest works at the Eden Rock Hotel Gallery in St Barths from December 18, 2007 - February 28, 2008. The exhibition is a partnership with the Gagosian Gallery and will showcase new paintings as part of his "Eden Rock" or "Deathlands" series. This is just the first of a series of exhibitions by high profile artists planned at the Eden Rock Hotel Gallery. Winter season rates for 2008 start at 665€, based on double occupancy and include breakfast, airport transfers and taxes. In the gallery below check out a few teasers of what the completed paintings look like.

Winston Churchill was a man of many talents - the master statesman was a Nobel Prize winning author as well as well-respected amateur artist. He painted Marrakech around 1948 and gifted the work to President Truman. In a note accompanying the painting, Churchill described his work as as "about as presentable as anything I can produce." The painting, which depicts one of the city's gates against the backdrop of the Atlas mountains, became one of the American president's most prized possessions, leading him declare, "I shall treasure the picture as long as I live and it will be one of the most valued possessions I will be able to leave to (daughter) Margaret when I pass on." Truman did leave the painting to his daughter upon his death in 1972 and now she is putting it up for auction. Now valued at $1.03, it hits the auction block at Sotheby's in London on December 13. The previous record for a work by Churchill was set in July, when his Chartwell Landscape with Sheep sold for $2.06 million.

Often the "name" paintings go to the bigger auction houses like Christies and Sothebys but this lovely lady is being auctioned off at Gallery 63 in Atlanta on September 23. And she comes with a bit of mystery.The painting is an original oil-on-canvas portrait of Jenny Jerome (Lady Randolph Churchill), by John Singer Sargent. The problem is that no record of the finished portrait exists, making provenance hard to establish. Studies of Lady Churchill are known but not an oil painting. In the press release, Paul Brown of Gallery 63 says that "with the right research, this painting could be worth millions." The person who buys the painting will be responsible for establishing the true history of the painting which is signed John S. Sargent but is undated. The painting has been in the possession of the current owner since 1970, when he purchased it from the Estate of Leroy Ireland, a well known art collector associated with the American artist, George Inness.

The sale also includes the American furniture collection of the curator of the Michael Carlos Museum at Emory University in Atlanta, a 1932 Chevrolet Super Confederate Roadster, a Civil War reunion medal commemorating the West Virginia Militia members, Civil War documents, bronze fountains and a massive Baccarat chandelier.

70 year old Joan Hardee got quite the birthday greeting in the mail when she received a painting from artist Damien Hirst. Joan had been Hirst's college secretary, so when her son was planning a surprise birthday party he asked Hirst if he wouldn't make a special card for her. Hirst, though, took it a step farther and sent her an entire painting instead with the words "Happy Birthday Joan" written on it. At the time the painting had an estimated value of £30,000.

Joan Hardee had attempted to sell the painting back in 2001 (rumors are she couldn't afford to insure it) but was unsuccessful, so assuming she still has it how much to do suppose it's worth now?

When someone says "tortilla" to you, what pops to mind? Lunch, right? A nice big burrito with extra sour cream. But Mr. Joe Bravo isn't like most of us, when he thinks "tortilla" he starts thinking of his next artistic inspiration. To him tortillas are canvases on which he paints amazingly detailed and deep creations with acrylics. Of course, the tortillas must be prepped and treated beforehand, and for each painting Bravo searches through several tortillas until he finds the one with just the right appearance and texture. This month Bravo will be heading to Hong Kong to showcase his floury creations while painting a celebrity live and in person. I'd love to see him paint -- must be an interesting process!

Via Book of Joe

When Rupert Murdoch's father, Keith Murdoch, staged a contemporary art exhibit in Australia in 1939, Vincent Van Gogh's "Head of a Man" was on display. It was later purchased by Australia's National Gallery of Victoria for $3,500 and has been a part of their collection ever since. However, last August, when the painting was shown at the Dean Gallery in Edinburgh, Scotland, critics noticed something wasn't right. The work, dated 1886, appeared to be of a different style than other Van Gogh paintings during the same period. What's more, the painting was never mentioned in the artist's letters.

"Head of a Man" was then sent to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam where experts have now declared it to be a fake. Gerard Vaughan, director of the National Gallery of Victoria, says the painting was most likely the work of a Van Gogh contemporary and makes clear that the painting was simply misattributed, not a deliberate forgery. Had the painting been authentic, it would have been valued at around $21 million.

Normally a kiss as a sign of affection is a good thing, but when it happens in an art gallery on a $2.7 million dollar painting it's not only not a good thing -- it's a crime. It happened last Thursday in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Avignon, France. The woman, 30-year-old Sam Rindy, had apparently been admiring a 9'x6' bone white painting by Cy Twombly valued at over £1 million and was suddenly overcome and just had to kiss it. She's quoted as saying "The artist left this white for me."

Yeah, well it's not white anymore since there's a lipstick imprint left behind. Ms. Rindy is awaiting trial on August 16 for "damage to a work of art."

How stupid can you be?

Sir Anthony Hopkins has joined the ranks of celebrities who paint (a group that includes Tony Bennett, Jane Seymour and Sylvester Stallone among others). Dreamscapes, an exhibition of paintings by Hopkins is currently on display at theMW Gallery in Aspen, Colorado through July 10. In an article on Artnet, dealer Robert Casterline says the works include abstract landscapes and surrealistic faces. The star began painting a few years ago and according to icWales, he would rather be painting than acting at this point because there are no more challenges for him in the acting world. The paintings are priced at $4,000-$20,000.

A painting by artist Mark Rothko broke the record for postwar art by more than a little at an auction at Sotheby's in New York when it sold for $72.8 million dollars on Tuesday. Although "White Center (Yellow, Pink, and Lavender on Rose)," was expected to go for high dollars (presale estimates had put it around $40 million), the over-the-top boost can most likely be attributed to the big name of owner and seller David Rockefeller Sr. -- who says he plans to donate the proceeds of the sale to charity.

It was a big night for record breaking sales, as earlier that night Francis Bacon's "Study From Innocent X" broke all previous records selling for $52.7 million, only to be outdone by the Rockefeller's Rothko moments later.

What if next time somebody visits your home, and inquires about a beautiful new hand painted piece of artwork, you can smile and say "I did that," and then enjoy the surprised faces of your guests. I know what you're thinking: Yeah right. But even those with severe artistic challenges have that option now with "paint-it-yourself" kits from Weego Home. The Paint by Number sets include everything you need to complete a 32" or 40" canvas painting, including a wooden stretcher frame, pre-drawn primed canvas, acrylic paints, brushes, and full instructions. And honestly I don't think the end results look too shabby at all.

So let your inner artist break free! Within the pre-drawn lines, of course.

Although neither the seller nor the buyer, both private and tight-lipped, want to comment on the sale, the $140 million price tag that was attached to a Jackson Pollock paining last week makes it the most expensive piece of artwork in history. The painting, which was done on fiberboard, is titled "No. 5, 1948" and measures 4-feet 8-inches in height. David Geffen reportedly it sold to the "obsessively private" Mexican financier David Martinez through Sotheby's. The NY Times speculates that, as Geffen just sold off two other very expensive paintings in the last few weeks, he may be trying to raise money for a bid to purchase the LA Times.

[Thanks, Lana]

There is a reason why so much artwork - particularly older, valuable pieces - is displayed behind glass cases or out of the public's reach: the art is easily damaged and galleries and museums don't want to take unnecessary chances with their investments. When you are a private collector, those safeguards aren't always maintained. This isn't a problem when personal collections are small, but it is when you own a $140 million dollar painting, such as Picasso's La Reve, owned by Steve Wynn. Wynn, after selling the painting for just under that price, accidentally punched a hole in the canvas with a careless elbow.

Apparently, the painting can be restored and Wynn is taking this as a sign that the painting should not be sold, but when you're dealing with something so valuable in the first place, even private collectors might consider an extra precaution or two.

[Thanks, Mike!]

This silkscreened print, Loyal Companion, features the elegant profile of a greyhound on hand-woven paper and framed in silver-foiled wood. The blue and pink colors used in the print can be swapped, should you prefer a pink dog to a blue one, but in either case, the contrast makes the relatively simple piece very eye-catching. It has a pop-art feel that would look good in most contemporary settings and, of course, it would be great for a dog-lover. Price: $498.

When it comes to artists, no one is cooler than Andy Warhol. That having been said, no one is quite as expensive to buy, either. But don't let the price tags of those auction houses discourage you. Now, everyone can afford to have their own Warhol-inspired piece of original art. All you have to do is send a photograph to the people at Nic Norman, and they will turn your snapshot into an Andy Warhol-style piece of Pop Art to don the walls of your home or office.

The artists at Nic Norman work one-on-one with customers to create unique prints. Each custom pop art design is printed on real canvas with museum-quality pigment-based archival inks. The prints are professionally stretched and gallery mounted with the highest quality white pine wooden frames.