Although art almost by definition defies any kind of summation or generalities, a few wide trends can still be observed. Painting style has moved from the Renaissance-era stylized but still somewhat realistic to the more abstract late 19th-century impressionism, and then beyond. Willem de Kooning was one of the beyond artists, creating works almost completely abstract. His talent, formed by eight years at Rotterdam Academy of Fine Arts and Techniques, was unquestioned, even as it was undervalued for most of his life.

On this day, November 18, 1997, an early work from the height of Willem de Kooning’s artistic career, Two Standing Women sold for $4 million, along with another de Kooning work that went for almost $2 million.

Compared to the $140 million price tag on de Kooning’s more famous work Woman III, the Christie’s auction was not much of an affair. But it does reinforce the preference modern collectors hold for 20th century abstractionist artists over the Renaissance masterpieces. At the time of its sale, Woman III was the third-most expensive painting ever sold, behind Jackson Pollock’s Number 5. Gustav Klimt and Pablo Picasso, both abstractionist painters, dominate the Top 10 in the most expensive paintings list. But to be fair the most expensive painting, last sold to the royal family of Qatar for a cool quarter of a billion dollars, was by Paul Cezanne, The Card Players.