Vancouver entrepreneur buys nude painting of Stephen Harper

The Emperor has a new home. A Vancouver entrepreneur has purchased Margaret Sutherland's Emperor Haute Couture, the controversial nude painting of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

"Every time I look at it I burst out laughing," Frederick Ghahramani tells As It Happens host Carol Off. "But I know that it doesn't come from a funny place. As with all biting satire, it comes from a desperate, frustrated place."

Ghahramani says he will not "vulgarize" the painting by divulging the amount he paid, but he admits his bid exceeded $10,000. Last week, As It Happens spoke with the previous owner, retired federal bureaucrat Danielle Potvin, who sparked the online bidding war when she listed the painting on Kijiji.

This is not the first time Ghahramani has made headlines. In October, he spoke with As It Happens after he pledged $1 million to groups fighting to repeal anti-terror law C-51.

The previous owner hung the painting in her living room but Ghahramani says it's unlikely Emperor Haute Couture will ever grace his walls.

"My wife has vetoed this," Ghahramani says. "She said, 'There's only room for one pudgy middle-aged man in our house.'"

He says he will instead lend it out to universities and high schools.