Jeff Koons' Rabbit sculpture fetches $91.1million in New York and sets a new auction record for a living artist Rabbit sculpture (1986) is a 41in steel cast based on an inflatable children's toy American artist Jeff Koons became a leading figure in New York in the 1980s The sculpture, sold for $91.1 million, set a new auction record for a living artist By Chiara Fiorillo For Mailonline Published: 04:37 BST, 16 May 2019 | Updated: 09:27 BST, 16 May 2019 Viewcomments A stainless steel sculpture of a rabbit by American artist Jeff Koons has fetched $91.1 million (£71 million) in New York. Auction house Christie's sold Koon's 1986 'Rabbit' on Wednesday and the sculpture became the most expensive work by a living artist to be sold at auction. The previous record was set by British artist David Hockney. 'Rabbit' by American artist Jeff Koons is a steel cast inspired by an inflatable children's toy Artist Jeff Koons, pictured reflected in his sculpture 'Rabbit', became a leading figure in New York's art scene in the 1980s The sculpture, sold by Christie's in New York for £91.1 million, became the most expensive work by a living artist His 1972 Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) was sold for $90.3 million (£70.4) by Christie's last year. Rabbit, a 41in (104cm) steel cast inspired by an inflatable children's toy, had an estimated sale price of at least $50 million (£39 million). The winning bid came from Robert E Mnuchin, an art dealer who was in the sales room and said he bought the sculpture on behalf of a client, Bloomberg reports. Koons' Rabbit by Koons, pictured on display at the Chateau de Versailles near Paris, France Christie's, which described 'Rabbit' as 'one of the most iconic works of 20th-century art', said the sculpture is one of three editions plus one artist's proof. 'Its lack of facial features renders it inscrutable, yet its form evokes fun and frivolity,' the auction house wrote on its website. Christie's initially estimated that 'Rabbit' would sell for a price between $50 million (£39 million) and $70 million (£54.6 million). Christie's described 'Rabbit' (pictured) as 'one of the most iconic works of 20th-century art' Christie's initially estimated that 'Rabbit' would sell between $50 million (£39 million) and $70 million (£54.6 million) Jeff Koons' (pictured) previous auction high was $58.4 million (£45.5 million) for his piece Balloon Dog (Orange) The winning offer, however, came in for $80 million (£62.3 million) after 10 minutes's bidding and it resulted in a price of $91.1 million (£71 million) including the auctioneer's fees. Jeff Koons became a leading figure in New York's art scene in the 1980s. The American artist's previous auction high was $58.4 million (£45.5 million) for his piece Balloon Dog (Orange), which was sold at Christie's in 2013. On Tuesday, a painting from Claude Monet's 'Haystacks' series was sold for $110.7 million (£86.33) at Sotheby's, becoming the most expensive Impressionist artwork ever sold at auction. Read more: Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site dailymail and under his responsibility