Bacon painting fetches $16.5M at auction

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LONDON, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- "Study from the Human Body, Man Turning on the Light," a painting by renowned 20th-century artist Francis Bacon, has been sold in London for $16.5 million.

Created in 1973 and 1974, the artwork was given to the Royal College of Art in London in exchange for rent and auctioned during the weekend at Christie's. The painting had been expected to fetch up to $18.3 million, the BBC said.

Pieces by Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat failed to sell at the auction, while several works by Damien Hirst were bought for less than pre-sale estimates.

This month's London auctions are being watched for signs that the thriving art market may be cooling.

Earlier this year, Bacon's "Study from Innocent X" fetched $52.6 million at Sotheby's in New York -- marking a record price paid for a Bacon piece, the BBC said.

Bacon, who had no formal training as an artist, died of a heart attack in Madrid in 1992.