Famous Picasso Art Work Valued at $139 million "La Reve" Accidentally Punctured by Owner

Imagine owning a famous Picasso art work worth $139 million and damaging it in front of witnesses. That's what happened to owner Steve Wynn when he put his elbow through something for which he paid no small fortune. Sometimes called "The Dream", this Picasso art work is a painting of Picasso's young mistress, 21-year-old Marie-Theresa Walter executed 74 years ago. Wynn's accident left a two inch hole in the famous Picasso art work. Wynn has a medical problem called retinitis pigmentosa which interferes with his peripheral vision which caused his misjudgment. The damage to the Picasso art work was witnessed by Barbara Walters and others.

This Picasso art work set a new sale record topping the previous record by $4 million.

Wynn originally paid $48.4 million in 1997 for the Picasso art work, but he planned to sell it to another collector, Steve Cohen, for a healthy profit having just finalized the deal for a record $139 million, $4 million more than the previous record set for the sale of a 1907 Gustav Klimt portrait at $135 million. Rather than sell "La Reve" Wynn intends to keep his famous Picasso art work and have it repaired.

Brenda Harness, Art Historian

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