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Lucio Fontana's Slashed Canvas Hits £2.8 Million at Sotheby's Bidding Battle Record in London

Sotheby’s London auction on Thursday featured Lucio Fontana’s 1961 “Slashed Canvas,” a 14‑cut electric‑blue work that had not appeared at public sale since 1984. The piece opened at £1.6 million and, after a fierce contest between bidders Lorenzo and Claudia, closed at £2.8 million, shattering the previous London record for a Fontana and marking the highest price ever paid for a slashed‑canvas at auction. The auctioneer’s rapid call‑outs—“£1.9 million, Claudia,” “£2.25 million, Lorenzo”—highlighted the intensity of the bidding war, while the work’s provenance, a private collection of over twenty years, added to its allure. The result signals renewed confidence in post‑war avant‑garde art, suggesting that collectors and institutions will continue to chase iconic works, potentially driving up valuations across the market.