Sex sells: why Modigliani’s 98-year-old hymn to lust is worth $170m
Painted through an absinthe haze as the first world war raged, Amedeo Modigliani’s Nu couché mixes modernist thrills with age-old hedonism. No wonder it still seduces
The art market
Swiss couple Iwan and Manuela Wirth top art power list
Wirths praised for changing model of how art is bought and sold, while Ai Weiwei ranks second and Nicholas Serota falls to fifth
Going, going, gone: how Sotheby’s and Christie’s still lose out on big sales
Despite increasing prices of art, big profits do not always trickle down to auction houses – thanks to generous guarantees to ultra-rich sellers
Super rich shift their thrills from luxury goods to costly experiences
Gourmet dining, private flights, bespoke safaris, slimming clinics and art auctions emerging as top status symbols
Sotheby’s and the $14bn hedge fund hawk struggle for control of art market
New York collector Dan Loeb’s bid to unseat auction house head highlights a new mood in the business