27.11.2024 14:11
The painting "Thoughts of a Tohunga" by New Zealand painter Charles Frederick Goldie sold for $2.2 million at auction. The artwork depicts a portrait of the Maori spiritual leader Wharekauri Tahuna and is recorded in art history as the highest-priced work ever sold.
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The painting "Thoughts of a Tohunga" by New Zealand painter Charles Frederick Goldie was sold at a record price at the auction it was featured in.
In a statement from the International Art Center located in New Zealand, it was noted that the portrait of the famous Maori spiritual leader Wharekauri Tahuna was Goldie's highest-selling work.
SOLD FOR 2.2 MILLION DOLLARS
The statement mentioned that the painting, considered a masterpiece by the art community, was sold for 2.2 million dollars at the auction, marking it as the highest-selling work in the country's art history.
Goldie's works documenting the elders and cultural figures of the Maori community hold an important place in the country's artistic heritage. The oil painting "Thoughts of a Tohunga," completed by the painter in 1938, is one of these works.
The spiritual leader of the Ngati Manawa Maori tribe depicted in the artwork, Wharekauri Tahuna, is known as an important symbol in the preservation of the indigenous culture.
The painting, which portrays Tahuna with the "moko" (traditional Maori tattoo) on his face and the traditional pendant "hei-tiki" around his neck, is regarded by art critics as Goldie's most successful work and the pinnacle of Maori portrait art.
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