The Jaw-Dropping Sale of Basquiat's Skull Painting

If you need proof that we're living in a wild world, just look at the painting in this image. How much would you pay for it? Or maybe, would you pay a lot to ensure you didn’t have to own such art?

Well, the painting in the picture, an untitled masterpiece by American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, was sold by Sotheby's last week for a record-breaking $110.5 million—the highest price ever paid at auction for an American artist's work.

If that sum doesn't sound absurd enough, wait until you hear how much this colorful skull sold for previously. Back in 1984, it went for just $19,000. Even the real estate prices in Tel Aviv haven't soared like that in this period.

The buyer, Yusaku Maezawa, a Japanese billionaire who made his fortune in e-commerce, stated that he intends to lend the painting to exhibitions and museums worldwide before making it the cornerstone of the museum he's establishing in his hometown in Japan. "I hope this piece of art brings happiness to people as it does to me," he joyfully announced. "And I hope this masterpiece by the 21-year-old Basquiat will inspire future generations."

How can you derive joy or pleasure from this painting? If you don't understand, you probably lack an artistic soul—or at least, you're not a billionaire.

Only ten paintings in the world have sold for over $100 million, and this Basquiat art is the first created after 1980 to sell at such a price.

Incidentally, if this painting reminds you of graffiti doodles you encounter from time to time, it's likely not a coincidence. Basquiat, the artist, grew up in New York and used to paint graffiti everywhere before it occurred to him to take his scribbling talents further. He quickly became famous for his vibrant, expressionistic paintings but did not enjoy fame for long; he died at 27 from a drug overdose.