November 14, 2007--Some Nice Things
It’s not just $2,500 pocketbooks that are selling like hotcakes. Yesterday the Dow-Jones average rose more than 300 points, and at Christie’s auction of postwar and contemporary art 16 records were set for artists such as Jeff Koons, Gerhard Richter, and Lucian Freud.
We do not need Lucian’s grandfather, Sigmund, to help us analyze what is going on. While most in the world, including right here in the U.S., are struggling just to get by, for an international elite there is tons of money around and all sorts of out-of-control spending.
For example, if you’re the 13th richest person in the world, Prince Walid bin Tabal of Saudi Arabia, $300 million is not too much to spend on a new private jet, a customized double-decker A380 that weighs 560 tons and has 6,400 square feet of interior space. No problemo.
The main deck will be reserved for meeting rooms, a dining room, and a spacious royal lounge. The rear section will have first- and business-class style seats for courtiers, advisers and other royal flunkies. I assume at meal times those relegated to the back of the bus will get more than pretzels and peanuts.
However, it's on the upper deck is where the fun will take place. Details are hard to come by because the palace and aircraft builders are known for their discretion when it comes to Saudi pleasures—he is a Muslim let us remember—but we do know that many divans will be included and, since the prince needs to stay in shape, considering his life-style, there will be a “wellness center” and I assume an on-board cardiologist.
But if you had an appetite for a second-rate 40-inch square Warhol “painting” of Elizabeth Taylor, one in a series of 13 “Liz’s,” each distinguished by a different colored background, you should have been at Christie’s last night. One bought by the actor Hugh Grant six years ago for $3.5 million was on the block. And if its deep turquoise blue background goes with your color scheme, you could have walked away with it for a cool $21 million. Clearly Hugh knows a good investment when he sees one.
The New York Times reports (article below) that the London jeweler, Laurence Graff, was an active bidder. He grabbed another Warhol, “Elvis 2 Times” (clever double-entendre tile) for a mere $15.7 million and a Basquiat, “Sugar Ray Robinson,” for just $7.3 million. Clearly his bauble business is thriving because he said he felt that though he had gotten a bargain he was prepared to “go much higher.” And when things wrapped up for the evening, he admitted that he felt good about his shopping—“I got some nice things.”
Sarah Jessica Parker was in attendance at Christie’s as was the blue-haired designer Marc Jacobs of the $2,500 pocketbooks. My own guess—after last night’s spending orgy he raised all his prices.
We do not need Lucian’s grandfather, Sigmund, to help us analyze what is going on. While most in the world, including right here in the U.S., are struggling just to get by, for an international elite there is tons of money around and all sorts of out-of-control spending.
For example, if you’re the 13th richest person in the world, Prince Walid bin Tabal of Saudi Arabia, $300 million is not too much to spend on a new private jet, a customized double-decker A380 that weighs 560 tons and has 6,400 square feet of interior space. No problemo.
The main deck will be reserved for meeting rooms, a dining room, and a spacious royal lounge. The rear section will have first- and business-class style seats for courtiers, advisers and other royal flunkies. I assume at meal times those relegated to the back of the bus will get more than pretzels and peanuts.
However, it's on the upper deck is where the fun will take place. Details are hard to come by because the palace and aircraft builders are known for their discretion when it comes to Saudi pleasures—he is a Muslim let us remember—but we do know that many divans will be included and, since the prince needs to stay in shape, considering his life-style, there will be a “wellness center” and I assume an on-board cardiologist.
But if you had an appetite for a second-rate 40-inch square Warhol “painting” of Elizabeth Taylor, one in a series of 13 “Liz’s,” each distinguished by a different colored background, you should have been at Christie’s last night. One bought by the actor Hugh Grant six years ago for $3.5 million was on the block. And if its deep turquoise blue background goes with your color scheme, you could have walked away with it for a cool $21 million. Clearly Hugh knows a good investment when he sees one.
The New York Times reports (article below) that the London jeweler, Laurence Graff, was an active bidder. He grabbed another Warhol, “Elvis 2 Times” (clever double-entendre tile) for a mere $15.7 million and a Basquiat, “Sugar Ray Robinson,” for just $7.3 million. Clearly his bauble business is thriving because he said he felt that though he had gotten a bargain he was prepared to “go much higher.” And when things wrapped up for the evening, he admitted that he felt good about his shopping—“I got some nice things.”
Sarah Jessica Parker was in attendance at Christie’s as was the blue-haired designer Marc Jacobs of the $2,500 pocketbooks. My own guess—after last night’s spending orgy he raised all his prices.
posted by Steven Zwerling at
10:54 AM
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