Leonardo DiCaprio raises USD 35 million at Christie`s auction

Los Angeles: Hollywood superstar Leonardo DiCaprio reportedly raised a staggering USD 35 million at Christie`s the 11th Hour charity event. The money raised through the auction will go to DiCaprio`s environmental and wildlife conservation efforts. Thirty-three works by contemporary artists including Ed Ruscha, Julian Schnabel, Banksy, Elizabeth Peyton, Takashi Murakami and Raymond Pettibon were on the block, with many fetching record prices, the Hollywood Reporter said. DiCaprio`s `The Great Gatsby` co-star and close friend Tobey Maguire attended the auction and put in the winning bid for Sergej Jensen`s Untitled (USD 262,500. Bradley Cooper, Mark Ruffalo and Salma Hayek also were at the auction. Art Market Monitor reported that a total of USD 35 million-plus was raised from the event, nearly double the USD 18 million that organizers were aiming to raise. The money raised will be earmarked for conservation projects, selected by the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. PTI