A controversial nude painting featuring Madonna and her ex-husband Guy Ritchie has finally been sold.
Crafted by Scottish artist Peter Howson, the much talked about painting features Madonna and her then husband Guy Ritchie posing in the nude. Madonna is shown pregnant, reclining against her husband.
The painting generated much public attention when it was put up for auction earlier this year. Mctear’s Auctioneers in Glasgow were due to sell the painting, but despite predictions of a bidding war the art work failed to meet its reserve price.
Withdrawn from sale, the painting has now been sold privately for an undisclosed sum, reports BBC News.
Brian Clements of McTear’s told reporters he was “delighted to have secured such an excellent price for the painting”.
“Although we cannot divulge the name of the buyer,” he added, “we can confirm that the painting will be leaving Scotland.”
Madonna’s marriage to Guy Ritchie collapsed last year. After months of speculation the pair were granted a quickie divorce before Christmas, just weeks before their eighth wedding anniversary.
The pair represented a heavyweight celebrity pairing, matching a massively successful pop singer to a hot young director. Married in a Scottish castle the wedding has all the hallmarks of a fairytale.
The singer made numerous onstage references to her failing marriage. With the pair said to be a loggerheads, Madonna dedicated a song to “the emotionally retarded” during a concert on her record breaking Sticky And Sweet tour.
Since then the singer has been linked with numerous high profile figures, such as American baseball player A-Rod. However the public attention may have back fired on Madonna, who endured criticism from authorities in Malawi during a recent adoption case.
Attempting to gain guardianship of a young girl in the African nation, some in Malawi’s adoption agencies felt that the singer would not be able to offer the child a stable home due to her links with many different men.
Peter Howson’s nude portrait of Madonna has now been sold.
