Peter Doig, born in Edinburgh, is one of the most celebrated contemporary figurative painters working today. Internationally renowned for his atmospheric, memory-laced imagery, Doig for a time held the record for the most expensive artwork sold at auction by a living artist, a milestone that speaks both to his critical stature and to the market’s recognition of his singular vision.
Based between New York, Düsseldorf, and Trinidad, Doig’s practice traverses continents, infusing his paintings with a sense of dislocation, longing, and dream. His large-scale canvases often reveal figures slowly emerging from dense, luminous landscapes: a lone canoeist drifting across still water; cricketers caught in suspended motion; groups of friends half-seen in muted light. Everywhere there is movement; trees entangle, stars glimmer, water mirrors, and passing cars imprint themselves, all contributing to an enduring sense of something unsettled.
Colour and light are central to Doig’s visual language. His palette shifts from gentle, complementary tones to bold, startling contrasts, its emotional resonance enhancing the viewer’s experience of each work. Through layered brushwork and chromatic nuance, he evokes sensation, memory, and place in tandem.
Doig often begins with found imagery - photographs, film stills, newspaper cuttings, art historical references and responds to them with expressive, painterly transformation. The space between source and finish is rich with ambiguity: images slip, fade, re-emerge, as though the painting itself were engaged in remembering.
Record Sale & Market Recognition 2025
In a high-profile sale in London (October 2025), a work by Peter Doig titled Ski Jacket achieved an exceptional result significantly exceeding its presale estimates and reaffirming his position at the apex of the contemporary art market. The painting, created during a pivotal year in Doig’s career, attracted fierce competition, with multiple bidders vying in a short, intense stretch of bidding. It sold for a sum that reset expectations for his market value and underscored the maturity and desirability of his oeuvre.
This achievement is especially meaningful because, while Doig’s work commands high prices, he has seldom courted fame as a market phenomenon. The intensity around this sale stems from what the painting is, not just who painted it.
