Warhol painting could set new artist record

ULA ILNYTZKY
This image provided by Christie's auction house, Monday, Nov. 4, 2013 is of "Balloon Dog (Orange)" by Jeff Koons. The work sold for $58.4 million, a world auction record for the artist and a world auction record for a living artist, said Christie's. The auction house did not reveal the buyer. (AP Photo/Christie's)

NEW YORK (AP) — Records are meant to be broken and they were — with remarkable speed at Christie's auction house.

Bids shot up to $142 million in just six minutes Tuesday night for a Francis Bacon painting, making it the most expensive work of art sold at auction. World auction records also were set for 10 other artists.

More feverish bidding is expected Wednesday night when a painting by Andy Warhol comes up at Sotheby's.

"Silver Car Crash (Double Disaster)" is expected to fetch as much as $80 million. The current auction record for Warhol is $71.7 million for "Green Car Crash (Green Burning Car I). It sold in 2007.

"Silver Car Crash" is one of four paintings in the artist's "Death and Disaster" series. The other three are in museums.