May 14, 2015 (Thursday)
How much would you pay for an original 1955 Picasso painting? Somebody paid $179.4 million this week. It was the most ever paid at auction for a painting.
The new causeway over Copano Bay, two miles long, with four lanes and two shoulders, and a concrete barrier between north and south lanes, when completed, is costing $100 million. That might give us budget-minded ordinary folks some idea of how much money is being paid for the painting.
In round numbers, what could a person buy with $179.4 million?
- 6,000 cars at $30,000 each.
- 90,000,000 pounds of potatoes at 5lb for $2
- 60,000,000 gallons of milk at $3.00 each
- 900 homes at $200,000 each (a nice subdivision)
- ..and so on..
Picasso died in 1973 at the age of 91. He was our contemporary. Yesterday, only 42 years after his death one of his paintings fetched the highest price ever paid for a painting.
Prices paid for Picasso’s paintings are rivaled only by those of Van Gogh, whose genius was recognized after his death, whereas Picasso enjoyed fame and influence most of his life.
OK. so we’ve established that Picasso’s work is worth a lot of money. How many would you like? One is on special for only $179.4 million. No, on second thought, it is sold. Sorry.