The $106.5-million Picasso and the Bel-Air house where it hung

The art world is buzzing over the sale Tuesday night of Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust,” sold at Christie’s in New York for $106.5 million, making it the world’s most expensive artwork ever purchased at auction. The 1932 painting came from the estate of Frances Lasker Brody, wife of Sidney F. Brody, but it’s not just the Brody art collection that’s up for sale.

The couple's Holmby Hills estate, pictured here with the Picasso on the wall at right, has gone on the market for $24.95 million.

Known for its fusion of midcentury architecture and Hollywood-style glamour, the 11,500-square-foot home was designed by A. Quincy Jones and decorated by William Haines in the late 1940s and early '50s.

Sidney Brody, a real estate developer who died in 1983, and wife Frances, who died in November, were art patrons and founding benefactors of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. They  collected works by Picasso, Degas, Miró, Renoir, Giacometti and Bonnard, among others.

Some of the their most valued pieces were auctioned by Christie’s, and the results in this morning include a Braque that went for more than $10 million, a Matisse that surpassed $15 million, and Giacometti sculptures that sold for $20.8 million and $53.3 million.

A team of Christie's designers, including international design director Marissa Wilcox, created rooms inspired by the Brody estate to showcase the works for sale. Keep reading for pictures of those rooms.

Above: One of the Brody estate-inspired settings created by Christie's to showcase the artwork for sale. “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust,” the Picasso that went for $106.5 million, is on the wall.

Above: Another environment created by Christie's. The pieces on the transparent pedestals are, from left: Alexander Calder's "Red Spike," which sold for $1,538,500; Henry Moore's "Reclining Figure No. 4," which sold for $1,650,500; Alberto Giacometti's "Grande Tête Mince," which sold for $53,282,500; and Edgar Degas' "La Masseuse," which went for $458,500. 

You can find all of the results on the Christie's website. And if you're interested in the house, call Linda May or Jade Mills of Coldwell Banker Previews International of Beverly Hills, because right now you won't find the listing on the website.

-- Alexandria Abramian Mott

Photo credits: Brody estate photos by Kate Carr Photography; Christie's rooms by Rhea Karam.

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Comments

[Sue Bauman]

This article is fascinating to me! Keep up the good work reporting on L.A. homes and art!

[Belinda Gomez]

And the idea of donating these works of art to a local museum never crossed anyone's mind? Times sure have changed.

[Belinda Gomez]

So what did they donate to LACMA?

[Sam K]

Can anyone believe that there are people who can afford this stuff in our current economy? The rich does get richer...

[Boils]

What a wildly ugly and disfunctional modern home. It must have been awful to live in. So stark; so without soul or ornament. What did Mr. Brody build - tract housing.

The worth of the Picasso is also absurd as the artist's works are nothing but baseball cards (branded) for uber-rich folk who know nothing aobut art. Absolutely nothing. But they can hang a Picasso on the wall and their nabob friends will all nod their heads in apprciation when viewing - mostly because they will have an idea (correct) that it cost a lot of money.

Has no one told the rich recently that: You wear no clothes?