Which painting by Clyfford Still sold for $61.7 million in 2011?

Clyfford Still’s 1949-A-No. 1 sold for $61.7 million in 2011.

The monumental abstract painting was sold by Sotheby’s in New York on November 9, 2011, for $61,682,500. Its estimate had been $25 million to $35 million, so the final price substantially exceeded expectations. The sale made it one of the most expensive works by an Abstract Expressionist at auction.

1949-A-No. 1 is an oil painting from 1949, measuring roughly 93 by 79 inches. Still’s compositions often use jagged, vertical areas of intense color separated by irregular edges, creating the impression of fissures or ruptures across the canvas. The work’s title follows Still’s systematic dating and numbering rather than a descriptive subject name.

The 2011 auction was unusual because four Still paintings were sold to help fund the Clyfford Still Museum in Denver, which opened in November of that year. The other major results included 1947-Y-No. 2 at about $31.4 million and PH-1033 at about $19.6 million.