How Much Is Self-Portrait as a Heel (Part Two) Worth?

Valuation conclusion: This final valuation is anchored to the painting’s documented, arm’s‑length sale. Self‑Portrait as a Heel (Part Two), 1982, realized $42,000,000 (final price with buyer’s premium) at Sotheby’s New York on 15 November 2023; that public sale is the primary market anchor for present value [1]. Accounting for comparable transactions, the painting’s date and scale, and current market conditions, my current market value range for the identical object is $35,000,000 to $55,000,000. This range treats the 2023 sale as the baseline and allows for market movement, sale channel premium/discounts, and any newly surfaced documentation.

The picture’s year (1982) places it in Basquiat’s commercial and critical apex. It is a large‑format, acrylic and oilstick canvas (96 x 61½ in), and the self‑portrait subject carries additional curatorial and collector interest. Works from 1981–83 consistently capture the highest demand within Basquiat’s oeuvre; a large, well‑documented canvas from that period is typically marketable to the blue‑chip collector base that underwrites seven‑figure and multi‑million‑dollar prices. Given those intrinsic attributes, the piece has the formal credentials to trade at the mid‑to‑upper end of the market for Basquiat canvases.

Comparable sales illustrate the valuation bandwidth. The painting’s $42M realization sits close to Phillips’ May 2024 sale of Untitled (ELMAR), 1982 (≈$46.5M), which acts as a practical peer for similarly scaled and dated canvases [2]. Higher marquee results (for example the 1982 skull, In This Case and the Maezawa picture) define the ceiling for the very rare, flagship canvases; more modest 1982 works or those with opaque provenance have historically traded well below the mid‑eight figure threshold. The $35M–$55M band therefore reflects the painting’s 2023 arm’s‑length price, with a ±~25% window to accommodate sale timing, guarantees, and marketing strategy.

Provenance and public exhibition materially support the Sotheby’s outcome and the above range. Sotheby’s lot notes cite early representation by Larry Gagosian, ownership by Stéphane Janssen, a Christie’s 1999 sale, and institutional publication/exhibition history — all factors that reduce buyer risk and increase competitive bidding [1]. If the object being valued exactly matches the images, inscriptions and provenance in Sotheby’s catalogue, the $42M transaction is the most comparable and is the preferred figure for insurance, lending and sale planning.

Risks that would move a fair‑market value materially below this band include undisclosed condition problems, evidence of heavy restoration, gaps or contradictions in provenance, or any contested attribution. Upside to the band would be achieved by fresh high‑profile museum loans, publication in a major catalogue raisonné, or a well‑timed evening sale marketed to deep collectors. Practically, for transaction planning I would treat $42M (the Nov 2023 sale) as the baseline and apply a market premium or discount of up to ~25% depending on timing, sale channel and any new documentary evidence — which yields the $35M–$55M range stated above.

Recommendations: obtain a conservator’s condition report, secure complete provenance documentation tied to the Sotheby’s lot entry, and solicit formal pre‑sale estimates from Sotheby’s/Christie’s/Phillips specialists. If you wish, I can prepare a consignor packet (high‑res images, provenance checklist and suggested auction timeline) keyed to this valuation.