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David Bowie's 'exceptionally rare' self-portrait expected to sell for £55k at Sotheby's

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Karasin, E. (2026, October 9). David Bowie's 'exceptionally rare' self-portrait expected to sell for £55k at Sotheby's. Evening Standard. https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/david-bowie-sothebys-london-b1300173.html

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Evening Standard · collected 2026-10-09 · by Ekin Karasin

Quick Summary

Sotheby’s is set to auction a rare self-portrait by David Bowie, described as one of the most personal and striking works ever offered at auction. The work features Bowie's likeness with handprints incorporated into the composition, creating an intimate connection to the artist. Sotheby’s highlights that only two other Bowie self-portraits have been sold previously, making this piece exceptionally rare given its directness and vivid coloring. Kate Chertavian, Bowie’s art adviser, notes that his painting practice remains relatively unknown but praises these self-portraits as capturing his essence.
Written by AI on 2026-10-09, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Sotheby’s is set to auction off a 1996 self-portrait by David Bowie, who passed away at age 69 on January 10, 2016. Painted during a prolific period of the mid-1990s, this piece has remained in the same collection since Bowie gave it to his St Ives gallerist. Sotheby’s describes it as “one of the most striking and personal self-portraits by David Bowie ever to appear at auction,” noting that it features Bowie’s likeness alongside two handprints pressed directly onto the composition, creating an intimate connection with the viewer.

The auction house highlights how the piece prominently displays Bowie's asymmetric eyes while emphasizing its rarity due to limited documentation about his painting practice. Only two other Bowie self-portraits have been sold at auction previously, making this one exceptionally rare and noteworthy. Auctioneers predict it could sell for around £55k.

Written for “Bowie Self Portrait Auction” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Bowie Self Portrait Auction
Entertainment · 2 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 6% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Evening Standard
Hedges 1 of 20 claims Outlet record 65/100
Times of India
Hedges 5 of 42 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles describe different paintings by David Bowie that were later sold at auction; they are not reporting on the same specific incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
18
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
6%
1 of 18 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
65/100
Evening Standard's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
2
Entertainment
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-09 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Evening Standard · 7865 article(s) · 64 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 64 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Ekin Karasin
76 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Also by Ekin Karasin
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
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Topics

London Sotheby’s

Subjects

Bowie PERSON · 7× David PERSON · 3× Sotheby’s ORG · 2× David Bowie PERSON · 1× Kate Chertavian PERSON · 1× London GPE · 1×

Narrative

Sotheby’s called the work on paper "one of the most striking and personal self-portraits by David Bowie ever to appear at auction", noting it contains his likeness alongside two handprints pressed directly on to the composition. The auction house said: “Staring directly out at the viewer, Bowie prominently displays his famously asymmetric eyes, while the handprints in the lower corners create an unusually intimate connection to the artist.”
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-09
🔮 It added: “More than a self-portrait, it’s arguably the closest thing to a physical trace of Bowie himself that a collector could own.”

Claims (18 extracted, 1 hedged)

The creation belongs to a small group of portrait heads produced at that time". asserted
creation → belong → time
After Bowie gifted the painting to his St Ives gallerist, it remained in the same collection until now. asserted
it → gift → collection
Sotheby’s called the work on paper "one of the most striking and personal self-portraits by David Bowie ever to appear at auction", noting it contains his likeness alongside two handprints pressed directly on to the composition. The auction house said: “Staring directly out at the viewer, Bowie prominently displays his famously asymmetric eyes, while the handprints in the lower corners create an unusually intimate connection to the artist.” asserted
handprints → call → artist
It added: “More than a self-portrait, it’s arguably the closest thing to a physical trace of Bowie himself that a collector could own.” uncertain
collector → add → that
The work is “particularly noteworthy” as “very little” has been published about Bowie’s painting practice. asserted
little → publish → practice
Sotheby’s said: “There is no catalogue raisonne or definitive record of this body of work. asserted
Sotheby → say → work
As a result, examples appearing at auction are exceptionally rare. asserted
examples → appear → auction
“In fact, only two Bowie self-portraits have previously come to auction. asserted
portraits → come → auction
Compared to those works, this piece is remarkably direct in its gaze, more vividly coloured and arguably far more commanding in its presence, making it one of the strongest Bowie self-portraits to emerge publicly to date.” asserted
it → compare → date
Bowie’s longtime art adviser and curator Kate Chertavian said: “Though David’s love of the visual arts has been widely celebrated, his life as a painter remains relatively unknown. asserted
life → say → painter
“So here we get a rare glimpse of David as a visual artist in his own right. asserted
we → get → right
I was very much part of his world when he created the series of eight self-portraits to which this work belongs. asserted
work → create → which
“He painted them in London – sometimes at a studio in my house, and sometimes in his hotel rooms. asserted
He → paint → rooms
He was prolific, producing prints as well as paintings, but these self-portraits are among my favourites – they capture the essence of David.” asserted
they → produce → David
He released his final album, Blackstar, on his 69th birthday, two days before his death in 2016. asserted
He → release → 2016
It became his first album to reach number one in the US, topped charts in more than 20 countries, and won five Grammy Awards. asserted
It → become → Awards
Last week it was announced that a series of special events, releases, collaborations and fan experiences had been launched around the world to mark what would have been his 80th birthday on January 8 next year. asserted
what → announce → January
Titled Bowie80, organisers say the events will acknowledge how Bowie’s impact can still be “seen, heard and felt across all forms of art and in mainstream and outsider culture spanning both the 20th and 21st centuries”. asserted
impact → title → centuries
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