Pollock painting sold for record $140 million: report

French Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres looks at a painting by Jackson Pollock at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York in 2005.

Thu Nov 2, 11:34 AM ET

A painting by artist Jackson Pollock has been sold for about $140 million, which would make it the highest price ever paid for a painting, The New York Times newspaper reported on Thursday.

Citing experts who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the Times reported that Hollywood mogul David Geffen had sold the painting "No. 5, 1948" to Mexican financier David Martinez in a deal brokered by Sotheby's Tobias Meyer.

If the Pollock painting sale is confirmed, it would surpass the previous world record price paid for a painting, which was set in June when cosmetics magnate Ronald S. Lauder paid $135 million for a 1907 portrait by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt.

Geffen, Martinez and Sotheby's were not immediately available for comment.

David Geffen

The Times described Martinez as a "megabuyer" of modern art who had purchased works by masters such as Willem de Kooning and Mark Rothko in recent years.

"No. 5, 1948" is about 4 by 8 feet and features Pollock's drip-and-pour style in a tangle of red, yellow and blue.