A Jackson Pollock artwork, described as one of history’s “first truly abstract paintings”, has sold at auction for $181m (£135m) in New York.

Number 7A, 1948, which went under the hammer at the renowned Christie’s auction house on Monday, smashed the previous record for the most a work by the late American artist has taken at auction.

The painting, which came from the private collection of media magnate SI Newhouse, is also now the fourth most expensive artwork ever sold at auction, according to ARTnews.

Also in the collection was a bronze sculpture by Romanian artist Constantin Brancusi, which sold for $107.6m – the second highest amount a sculpture has ever gone for at auction.

Pollock, who died in 1956, was a major figure in the abstract expressionist art movement. His drip painting technique is one the art world’s most recognisable and often imitated.

The previous auction record for one of Pollock’s artworks was $61.2m for his Number 17, 1951 painting, which was sold in 2021. Other pieces have sold for higher prices in private sales.

Christie’s called Number 7A, 1948, which depicts black drips of paint with touches of red on a huge canvas spanning more than three metres, a key piece of art history.

“It is with this work that Pollock finally frees himself from the shackles of conventional easel painting and produces one of the first truly abstract paintings in the history of art,” it wrote in its description of the piece online.

Other artworks sold at the Christie’s auction included pieces by Mark Rothko and Joan Miro, which also both broke previous records for works by the artists at auction.

[BBC]

Thailand’s cabinet has approved a drastic reduction to its visa-free entry scheme for tourists from more than 90 countries.

The decision, issued on Tuesday, shifts the country away from a sweeping 60-day visa exemption introduced in July 2024 to stimulate its post-pandemic recovery. That exemption was for areas that included the United States, Israel, parts of South America and Europe’s 29-nation Schengen zone.

Under the new framework, the government will revert to a tiered system, capping visa-free stays at 30 days while shortening permission for citizens of some countries to just 15 days.

“The current scheme has allowed some people to exploit it,” government spokesperson Rachada Dhanadirek told reporters in Bangkok, noting that while tourism remains an indispensable pillar of the Thai economy, security concerns have taken priority.

Thai officials acknowledged the generous 60-day window had inadvertently opened loopholes, paving the way for a surge in illicit grey-market enterprises, unauthorised foreign workers and online scam operations. Policymakers now view a 30-day ceiling as an adequate timeframe to accommodate genuine, high-value travellers.

The policy reversal follows a series of high-profile arrests involving foreign nationals engaged in drug trafficking, human smuggling and running unauthorised local businesses, such as hotels and language schools.

Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow said the measure does not target any specific nationality but rather individuals abusing the visa system to evade law enforcement.

To prevent systemic abuse, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it will also enforce a strict cap of two visa-free entries per calendar year via land borders for the standard 30-day tier, mirroring protocols used before the 2024 expansion.

The government has not yet announced when the changes will take effect, but they were decided at a sensitive time for Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, where tourism accounts for more than 10 percent of its gross domestic product. Government data revealed a 3.4 percent year-on-year drop in foreign arrivals during the first quarter, driven largely by a nearly 30 percent plunge in Middle Eastern travellers.

Despite the downturn, officials maintained their annual target of attracting 33.5 million foreign tourists this year.

[Aljazeera]

An escaped tiger believed to be owned by Germany’s “Tiger Queen” has been shot dead by police after attacking one of its keepers.

Police told the BBC a 72-year-old man was seriously injured after being attacked on Sunday while he was inside the animal’s enclosure, located in a privately-owned facility on the outskirts of the German city of Leipzig.

The tiger escaped the enclosure and was found shortly after by armed police, who shot and killed the animal.

The site of the enclosure is believed to be owned by controversial trainer and private owner Carmen Zander, who describes herself as Germany’s “Tiger Queen”.

The animal was one of eight big cats kept at the industrial site near the German town of Schkeuditz, according to local media.

In a statement to the BBC, police said officers shot the animal, a male tiger, to eliminate any further risk to the public.

It added that the local police department received the emergency call at around 12:50 local time (11:50 BST) on Sunday, with officers arriving at the scene quickly.

A spokesperson said how the tiger escaped is part of an ongoing investigation.

No other animals have escaped from the site and police have planned a drone search to ensure it is fully secure.

District Mayor Thomas Druskat called for the other animals to be relocated and told local media it was “unthinkable” what could have happened if anyone else had been harmed.

Nearby residents told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) that the incident was “terrible and worrying”, with one claiming the animals were not kept in appropriate conditions.

Animal rights charity Peta called on the government to act, telling DPA that stricter rules needed to be put in place to protect privately-owned animals.

According to a website using Zander’s name and nickname, the trainer holds “unforgettable” and “one-of-a-kind” tiger petting events open to the public.

The website says visitors can pay to pet the “250kg powerhouses” at a site near Leipzig.

Another section of the website features the pictures of eight tigers – three which appear to have died in the last nine years. The tigers include 190kg Kiara, 20-year-old Aschanti, and two-year-old cub Imana.

Social media posts appearing to be from the trainer show several pictures of the tigers playing in the enclosures.

It also says the tigers are looked after and kept healthy in an animal-friendly environment.

The BBC has reached out to Zander for comment.

[BBC]