Gustav Klimt's portrait "Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer" (1914–1916) sold for $236.4 million (about R4 billion) at a Sotheby's auction in New York, becoming the most expensive modern artwork ever sold at auction and the second most expensive painting in history, behind only Leonardo da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi." The sale, which featured works from the estate of billionaire collector Leonard Lauder, unfolded in a tense 20-minute bidding war among six collectors. The painting had been hidden from public view since the 1980s. The same auction also saw Maurizio Cattelan's 18-karat gold toilet "America" sell for over $12 million.
The record-shattering sale underscores the enduring dominance of blue-chip modern masters in the art market, even as attention shifts toward contemporary and digital works. The painting's exceptional scarcity—only two full-length Klimt portraits remain in private hands—combined with its dramatic provenance, including its survival of Nazi seizure during World War II and the story of Elisabeth Lederer's claim that Klimt was her biological father to avoid persecution, added significant historical and emotional weight. The result signals renewed confidence in legacy artists and the power of narrative-driven collecting.