Say Wha?

And I quote...

The British artist Damien Hirst scooped up a 1969 self-portrait by Francis Bacon for $33 million.

- The NY Times, Carol Vogel, 11/17/07

I know it is old auction news, but I am still shocked by the fact that "artist", "scooped up", and "for $33 million" fall into one sentence in that order. End times?