Christie's to auction Andy Warhol works online

Christie's auction house said Thursday it will put 125 works of art by the American pop icon Andy Warhol under the hammer in an online-only sale starting next week, AFP reports. The auction, which will start Tuesday and run through March 25, will be the first time that Warhol's art is sold strictly online, Christie's said Thursday. Sales "will feature works representing a wide array of media spanning the artist's career," the auction house said in a statement. Estimates range from $600 to $70,000, Christie's said, offering buyers "extraordinary global access to Warhol's work. "The timed online format allows clients to browse, bid, receive instant updates by email or phone if another bid exceeds theirs, organize shipping, and pay from anywhere in the world," Christie's said. The online sale "will greatly expand access to Andy Warhol's work, in a fundamentally democratic manner that is entirely consistent with his art," said Joel Wachs, president of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. It will be the first of several online auctions scheduled for 2013. The proceeds will benefit the Foundation, which in turn offers financial support to artists and non-profit artist associations. The Foundation, created in accordance with Warhol's will following his death in 1987 at the age of 58, is dedicated to advancing the visual arts. The Warhol Foundation announced in September that it was dispersing its collection to raise more money for grants, with Christie's as the long-term partner. Some of the works will be donated to museums. The inaugural Warhol live auction at Christie's in New York on November 12 raised $17 million.