A painting by famed Chinese artist Qi Baishi fetched 72 million yuan ($11.4 million) Monday at China’s Poly art house’s autumn auction, a source at the event said.
Bidding for the work “Ode to the Motherland” began at 40 million yuan for the 1954 work that depicts a red crown crane watching a giant red sun setting over the ocean, the auction attendee, who asked not to be identified, said.
The painting was given to revolutionary leader Mao Zedong in 1954, but it was not clear who put the work up for auction. Qi died in 1957 at the age of 93.
Last year a work by Qi — who was recently ranked the world’s second highest valued artist by auction revenue, ahead of Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso — sold for $65 million at an auction in Beijing.
The work entitled “Eagle Standing on Pine Tree with Four-character Couplet in Seal Script” consists of a painting and a pair of calligraphy scrolls and was said to be Qi’s largest work.
Qi Baishi painting sells for $11.4 million in Beijing
