Bacon bought in 1971 to fetch £6m
A PAINTING by Francis Bacon bought for £31,500 nearly 40 years ago is returning to the market with an estimate of up to £6million.
The portrait, Man in Blue VI, was bought in 1971 and stayed in the same ownership until now.
It is from one of the most fruitful periods in Bacon's working life, and is now expected to be the top lot in next month's auction of post-war and contemporary art at Christie's.
Prices for Bacon have soared in recent years as he has come to be seen as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. Pilar Ordovás, an international director at Christie's, said: "This auction will present paintings which are offered for sale for the first time in a generation."
Man in Blue VI was painted in spring 1954 when Bacon was in a romance with Peter Lacy, a veteran Spitfire pilot. The sitter is an unknown man and seems to have been painted from life, even though the artist usually worked from photographs.
The sale, at King Street on 11 February, includes works by Jeff Koons, Willem de Kooning and a Mark Rothko with an estimate of £3.5million. They go on show in Old Brompton Road from 1 February.
