One of British artist David Hockney's most famous works, The Splash (left), was sold for £23.1 million (S$41 million) at the Sotheby's Contemporary Art Evening Auction in London on Tuesday.

This is the third highest price paid for a work by the 82-year-old artist.

The 1966 painting, in Hockney's minimalist style, depicts the moment after a diver hits the water in a Los Angeles swimming pool.

He first visited the Californian city in 1964, and began to work on his first pool painting on returning to London later that year.

The Splash is considered one of the stand-out pop art images of the 20th century and is one of a trio of works alongside A Little Splash and A Bigger Splash, which is currently on display at London's Tate Britain.