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]

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake visited the “Ranaviru Sevana” Rehabilitation Centre in Ragama this morning (19) and inquired into the well-being of military personnel receiving residential treatment there.

During the visit, the President engaged in cordial discussions with the soldiers and commended the sacrifices made by all of them in safeguarding the unity of the motherland.

Thereafter, President Dissanayake also held discussions with the medical staff, including doctors serving at the “Ranaviru Sevana” Rehabilitation Centre, and looked into the possibility of further improving medical and other welfare facilities available for the military personnel undergoing treatment.

Minister of Science and Technology Professor Chrishantha Abeysena, Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retired), Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Lasantha Rodrigo, Director of Ranaviru Services and Rehabilitation of the Sri Lanka Army Brigadier R.G.L.K. Weerakoon, and Chairman of the Ranaviru Seva Authority Brigadier Senarath Kohona (Retired) were among those who attended the occasion.

(PMD)

It’s taking longer than most expected, but Bangladesh are inevitably moving towards history. Bangladesh and Pakistan will go into a fifth day in Sylhet, with Bangladesh on the cusp of another 2-0 clean sweep of Pakistan. They need just three wickets to get there, with Mohammed Rizwan, unbeaten on 75, the final, valiant point of resistance for a visiting side who still need an improbable 121 for victory.

It was thanks primarily to Rizwan, and his 134-run partnership with Salman Agha in the final session, that kept Bangladesh waiting for so long when they appeared to be on course to finish Pakistan off. But two crucial wickets from Taijul Islam – who bowled more than a third of the overs on Tuesday – in the final half hour saw that partnership broken, and the hosts burrow deep into Pakistan’s tail.

Rizwan and Agha got together off the back of three quick wickets, and a resurgent Bangladesh sniffing for a quick knockout. Instead, they held them at bay for over three hours, counterattacking early on before seeing off wave after wave of spin and seam from Bangladesh. Even as Bangladesh attacked with the field, the duo kept run-scoring front and centre of their survival strategy, using their feet against spin and timing the ball expertly when pace returned.