Warhol’s Marilyn screen prints were not the first, nor the only ones in the famous quintet from 1964. Created from a photograph used in a Niagara promotional poster, the blue-tinted piece known as Shot Sage Blue Marilyn was unveiled in New York at Christie’s, marking a high point in a century-spanning dialogue about fame, mass production, and fine art. The auction house’s sale of this iconic image drew unprecedented attention, with a price tag that underscored the enduring demand for American pop art and its star subjects.
During the auction, the big question was not whether the work would sell, but who would win. In a brisk, four-minute bidding frenzy, gallery proprietor Larry Gagosian secured the winning bid, though the precise buyer remained unconfirmed. The ambitious price tag surpassed expectations, a sign that even a work associated with a bold postwar movement could command nearly two hundred million dollars, a figure that rivals the loftiest records in the market. While some observers had speculated on a figure flirting with two hundred million, others believed the piece might approach the fabled four-hundred-million threshold that would place it near Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi, which fetched 450 million in 2017.
Even so, the triumph of this Warhol canvas came on an auction night notable for its overall strength. Thirty-six lots changed hands, tallying around 318 million dollars, with only two works remaining unsold as the gavel fell. The event underscored a sustained appetite from major collectors and institutions for modern and contemporary art in a post-pandemic market. It also highlighted how investors continue to seek stability in art as other sectors experience greater volatility, turning to artists and works that carry cultural resonance and proven market power.
Acknowledging this demand is precisely what Christie’s aims to achieve. The house is positioning its modern and contemporary sales to build value this season, while Sotheby’s and other auction houses are similarly maneuvering to consolidate gains and attract new institutions into the bidding arena. The broader market is watching closely as spring sessions unfold, with expectations that record-setting prices could be within reach for notable single-artist collections and landmark canvases alike.
The game
Warhol’s Marilyn measures just over a meter in height and width, a stark, almost clinical representation that features blue eyeshadow, platinum hair, and red lips. Alex Rotter, director of the 20th and 21st Century Art Department at Christie’s, has described the work as a pinnacle of pop art’s aesthetic revolution, a testament to the era when mass production became a central theme of high culture. Painted in 1964, it followed Warhol’s initial quintet of Marilyns and marked a moment when the artist had already redefined the boundaries between commercial imagery and fine art. The series, born from a collaboration gone provocative, involved Dorothy Podber entering Warhol’s studio and capturing a set of silkscreens, though only those with a blue and red background were included in the final edition.
On this Monday in New York, the painting found a new home in the collection of Thomas and Doris Ammann, the Zurich-based dealers whose holdings once spanned a global network of galleries before Ammann’s passing in 1993. The sale continues a legacy of philanthropy and institutional support, with proceeds reinvested into health and education programs supported by the Ammann Foundation. The successful buyer’s commitment has ripple effects that extend beyond the hammer price, shaping future opportunities for artists, museums, and benefactors working to sustain art’s public role and educational value.