Ulrich Makes Millions From Basquiat Painting

Just when you thought Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich didn't need any more money, he's just pocketed $13.5 million U.S. for a painting.

Ulrich sold "Untitled (Boxer)," a painting by late American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, to an unidentified buyer in an auction at Christie's in New York City on Wednesday. The artwork of a black heavyweight fighter with his arms in the air was painted in 1982. It was estimated to go for between $12 million and $16 million, and actually sold for $12 million, but it also had a $1.5 million commission tacked on. Still, it fulfilled expectations despite the global financial crisis.

"Of course it's an awkward time to sell, but i've always been about taking chances," Ulrich told The New York Times newspaper last month.

"I have a lot of faith in the art market. It's perhaps the last frontier where the best of the best will not go the way of the rest of the economy."

This isn't the first time Ulrich has sold portraits at Christie's. He sold another 1982 Basquiat painting in 2002 that netted him $5.5 million.

Given that Metallica's recently released Death Magnetic currently occupies the #6 spot on the Canadian sales chart and sits at #12 south of the border, Ulrich must be laughing all the way to the bank. Economic crisis? What economic crisis?