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Karim Benzema Buying 1964 Picasso Masterpiece Rubs Art Lovers The Wrong Way

Art Twitter, Karim Benzema

Karim Benzema has been having the time of his life since his move to Saudi Arabian side Al Ittihad. The French legend has been banging in goals, winning trophies, and living life to the fullest. The £1,612,468 weekly salary (£100 million package per year) doesn’t hurt either.

Being the top earner for Al Ittihad, Benzema hasn’t been shy about flaunting it. He is a big fan of luxury cars as his collection features cars like the Bugattis (Chiron, Veyron Pur Sang), Mercedes-Benz (SLR McLaren, G65 AMG), Ferraris (458 Spider, 488 Pista), Lamborghinis (Urus, Aventador), and high-end Audis and Rolls-Royces, as well as the recent BMW M5 Competition.

Benzema is also known to be a highly stylish and fashionable figure, regularly flaunting luxurious designer clothes, modelling for luxury brands, and even attending fashion events. Moreover, he has also mentioned his affinity for high-end watches as a part of his personal collection.

An eternal lover of all things beautiful and luxurious, Benzema has somehow managed to surprise everyone with his latest purchase. The former Real Madrid number 9 flew to Paris the past weekend with his partner, French-Algerian actress Lina Khoudri, who is reportedly a big fan of art.

In fact, it has been speculated that Khoudri is the one who got Benzema into enjoying fine art.

The couple visited the iconic Louvre Museum, where the Frenchman bought a gorgeous oil on canvas painting titled “Portrait d’homme barbu” or popularly known as “Portrait of a Bearded Man”.

Drawn by Pablo Picasso in 1964, this is an incredible steal for any art connoisseur.

The Portrait of a Bearded Man is a special piece because it perfectly captures the change in the Spanish painter’s late period. His style transformed as he started using more bold, expressive brushstrokes, emphasizing the emotional impact and psychological presence over strict realism, features that have made his works from that era highly collectible.

Benzema shared the first glimpse of his latest purchase on social media, posting a picture of himself with the new painting he had just acquired and captioned it “Welcome home. #picasso”

While it isn’t known how much Benzema paid for the painting, there are various speculative prices thrown around. Onze Mondial, a French outlet, has used the recent auction at Christie’s and Sotheby’s as ra eference point to estimate that Benzema’s latest investment could be between €3.5 and €6 million.

Another Picasso masterpiece, “A Bust of a Man” from 1964, recently fetched $3.1 million at Phillips. Meanwhile, a chalk drawing of “The Portrait of a Bearded Man” exceeded $1.2 million at Christie’s as the prices of pieces from that time period have been soaring in recent years.

Incredibly, Picasso’s “Boy with a Pipe” was sold for a huge $104.16 million in 2004 as it became the most expensive portrait ever sold.

While Benzema and Khoudri loved their new purchase, fans on social media did not see the value in the painting. The reaction on French Twitter was mixed, to put it lightly, as fans who loved the purchase were few and far between.

Check out some of the translated reactions below –

@Ikurina_Pascal: You either feel a painting or you don’t. That’s just how it is. So if this canvas resonates with him and he can afford it, then good for him. Besides, in these inflationary times, investing in art is quite a smart move.

@LamiaBeija: Has he discovered a passion? Art? Hmm, I doubt it. I think he just doesn’t know what to do with his money anymore… he should go to Algeria, there are families in need there!

@BarbaraBrendt: A Picasso, whether you like it or not, doesn’t belong on the ground! Only this immoral, topsy-turvy world makes him believe he has that right because of his money. Football will one day fade into oblivion; art is given for eternity.

@pierbapt: Put this in a museum, where it belongs Money should not be the only filter to access iconic artworks

@BertrandSt75047: They have so much money, they don’t know what to do with it anymore… it stinks

@circusandpanem: When you know nothing about art but are looking to diversify your investments.

@Yannno4No: He poses with a Picasso, showing no respect or humility before the monumental artist. Art is bought out of love, passion, and knowledge of the field! It’s a shame such a work was acquired solely for tax optimization.

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