‘My Bed’ by Tracey Emin to be lent to Tate in London

The collector who recently purchased Tracey Emin’s provocative installation “My Bed” will be lending the artwork to the Tate in Britain on a long-term basis, the art organization announced on Tuesday.

Emin’s 1998 installation -- which features a messy bed accessorized with bottles, cigarette butts, a condom and underwear stained with menstrual blood -- was sold earlier this month for about $4.3 million as part of a Christie’s auction of contemporary art in London.

Charles Saatchi was the seller of “My Bed,” having purchased the work more than 10 years ago for about $255,000, according to a report this month from the BBC.

The Tate said in a release on Tuesday that the buyer was Count Christian Duerckheim, the German-born industrialist who has spent decades collecting. The terms of the loan are still being finalized but it is expected to be for at least 10 years, according to Nicholas Serota, director of the Tate.

Duerckheim said in a statement that he has “always admired the honesty of Tracey, but I bought ‘My Bed’ because it is a metaphor for life, where troubles begin and logics die.”

Last year, Duerckheim made a gift of 34 modern German graphic works to the British Museum. The donation included many works by artist Georg Baselitz.

When it was first exhibited, “My Bed” created an international stir for its frank suggestion of sexuality. The work was shortlisted for Britain’s Turner Prize in 1999.

Twitter: @DavidNgLAT