Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
LONDON (AP) - A Picasso painting of his muse has fetched 28.6 million pounds ($44.9 million) at a London auction.
The 1932 work, "Femme Assise Pres d'une Fenetre (Woman Sitting Near a Window)," is a portrait of the artist's "golden muse," Marie-Therese Walter.
Picasso first met his muse in Paris in 1927, when she was 17 years old, and the pair subsequently became lovers.
Helena Newman, who heads Sotheby's Impressionist and Modern Art department in Europe, called the painting a "stunning and monumental portrait" from one of the most celebrated periods in Picasso's life.
She added Tuesday that there has been a strong market for Picasso's portraits of Walter among collectors in recent years. Another portrait, "La Lecture," sold for 25 million pounds in 2011, double its pre-sale estimate.
(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
