Is This Painting Worth One Dollar Or One Million Dollars?

We have all heard news reports about ridiculous sums of money being paid for various works of fine art, from hundreds of thousand of dollars right up to the millions. The question is: how can anyone justify spending such a huge amount of money just for a painting? Some people would say "Hey, if some billionare wants to spend/waste a few million dollars on a canvas and some paint, that's their business". Many others though, feel that these prices and the publicity that surrounds them turn the work of art, and works of art in general, into a freak show. People start to evaluate a painting based not on their intrinsic aesthetic or artistic merits, but on the price that was paid for it. Nevertheless, record prices are still being paid for paintings all around the world.



Which brings us to our little quiz. Have a look at each of the paintings below. Is the painting worth one million dollars or above (that is, what was the last and highest price paid for the painting), or one dollar (based on the fact that the artist was a child, who has never sold a painting)? Just highlight the text to reveal the answer. (Please allow about 60 seconds for the pictures to load if you are using dial-up..hey, good art takes time!)



By the way, if you are interested in attending an art college in North America, you can find detailed information on the art institutes page. Or for online art schools, see the online schools page.

Highlight The Text Below For More Info About This Painting:



" Henri Matisse (1869-1954)

Algue rouge sur fond bleu ciel

Sold for £624,000 (British Pounds)

London, King Street

http://www.christies.com/history/promo_gallery.asp?page=1 "



Highlight The Text Below For More Info About This Painting:



" Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944)

Dünaberg, 1909

Oil on board

Sold for $5,513,235

London, King Street

http://www.christies.com/departments/exceptionalprices.asp?DID=29 "



Highlight The Text Below For More Info About This Painting:



" Stanislav Shpanin

Untitled

Age: 11

Not Sold Yet!

Country: Azerbaijan

http://www.theartgallery.com.au/KidsArt.html "



Highlight The Text Below For More Info About This Painting:



" Dora Maar au Chat by Pablo Picasso

Sold for $95.2 million

Sotheby's, New York

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_expensive_paintings "



Highlight The Text Below For More Info About This Painting:



" Myriah

Untitled

from Haggerty Elementary School - grade 3

United States

Not Sold Yet!



http://www.artsonia.com/museum "



Highlight The Text Below For More Info About This Painting:



" Stuart Davis (1892-1964)

Still Life with Flowers

Oil on canvas

Sold for $3,152,000

New York, Rockefeller Center

http://www.christies.com/departments/exceptionalprices.asp?DID=3 "

