Soon after Elisabeth Taylor’s death, an anonymous collector decided to sell his Liz #5 portrait of the actress by Andy Warhol. Some say this act shows nothing but lack of respect for the dead, but the truth is that money-wise, this person couldn’t have chosen a better time to make the move. The painting is expected to raise up to $30 million!
Phillips de Pury will auction off the painting on May 12 in New York. Warhol created this piece of art some 50 years ago, but Liz #5 is still in mint condition “with a perfect screen, glowing colours and impeccable provenance”. This, and the fact that Taylor was one of Warhol’s most famous inspirations, make the painting almost priceless. True contemporary art lovers will not fail to see that the painting embodies some of the most important themes in all of Warhol’s work: wealth, celebrity, scandal, sex and death.
Liz Taylor was 79 years old when she died last Wednesday. She was suffering from congestive heart failure, a disease in which the heart is no longer strong enough to pump blood for the whole body.
