Hirst`s auction turns groundbreaking

London, Sept 16: British artist Damien Hirst entered the record books Monday after an unprecedented auction of his works raised 70.5 million pounds (89 million euros, 127 million dollars) with more than 160 lots still to be sold.

Sotheby`s auction house in London said that after 56 of the total 223 lots were sold Monday -- the first of two days of sales -- it had made a spectacular 70.5 million pounds, more than the 62.4 million top estimate for the evening. The auction, entitled `Beautiful Inside My Head Forever`, broke new ground as the first time an artist has sold a bulk of work directly, bypassing art galleries who charge commission of up to 50 percent of the sale price. Monday`s auction also represented a new record for a sale dedicated to one artist, Sotheby`s said -- it beat the previous record set in 1993 for 88 works by Pablo Picasso, which went for a total of 20 million dollars. And it proved there is no shortage of art buyers even in the current economic gloom, which hit new lows Monday after the collapse of US investment giant Lehman Brothers plunged the financial markets into turmoil. "I think the market is bigger than anyone knows," Hirst said after the sale. "I love art and this proves I`m not alone and the future looks great for everyone!" The top selling item Monday was The Golden Calf, where Hirst returned to the style that made him famous and put a real calf in a tank of formaldehyde, adding 18-carat gold hoofs and horns and a gold disc on its head. It had been estimated at between eight and 12 million pounds, but in the end sold for 10.3 million, establishing a new record for a Hirst work at auction. Another highlight was The Kingdom, a tiger shark in formaldehyde, which easily beat its estimate of four to six million pounds by selling for a spectacular 9.5 million pounds. Although the preserved animals were out in force, the collection -- which Hirst has said was "probably the most amazing show I`ve put on" -- also expanded on his other classic themes, including butterflies and spot paintings. Passion, an arrangement of red butterfly wings on an oval canvas, sold for 848,000 pounds, while Rose Window, Durham Cathedral, where multicoloured butterfly wings were arranged as a stained glass, went for 1.27 million. Fragments of Paradise, a steel frame with glass shelves holding manufactured diamonds, sold for five times its estimated price at 5.2 million pounds. Hirst, 43, is already one of the best-selling modern artists in the world, but Sotheby`s said the unconventional auction and 11-day pre-sale exhibition -- which attracted 21,000 visitors -- had clearly paid off. "The auction and exhibition have very clearly broadened the market place for Damien Hirst`s work, which is a very significant accomplishment," said Sotheby`s specialist Cheyenne Westphal. Last year the artist, who works with a team of about 200, sold a platinum skull encrusted with 8,601 diamonds for 50 million pounds in a private sale. It is thought to be the world`s most expensive piece of contemporary art. Bureau Report