1966
See also : Bacon Bacon 1963-70 Head triptych Richter <1983 Hockney Warhol Celebrities by Warhol Zao Wou-Ki Cars 1966-67
1966 Marlon by WARHOL
1
1966 Four Marlons
2014 SOLD for $ 70M by Christie's
Andy Warhol was an interpreter of the society of his time. He was a film buff and the pictorial images which made him famous in 1962 were a last resort. Even Elvis, the king of music hall, is reappropriated in 1963 through an image taken from a movie. Warhol multiplies the cinematographic experiences as producer and director and announces in 1965 that he will devote himself entirely to cinema, with a clear tendency for the underground.
The star actor of the Warhol generation is Marlon Brando. In 1953 in The Wild One, Brando and his gang of bikers embody the rebellion against the established order. The young man is the archetype and the archangel of the new rebels without a cause. Andy reappropriates a publicity still on which the modern gang leader rides his Triumph. With his leather jacket and his cap, he is the archetype of the new lawless thug. Andy makes in 1963 a single painting, on a silver background.
This image is reused by Warhol in 1966 in the circumstances of the new threats against the American dream. The challenge is everywhere, against the war in Vietnam, for racial equality, against the social establishment, for non-violence. He seems to have chosen to revisit this theme himself, without a commission from a dealer or a prompting by a friend.
He prepares eight opuses of this Marlon by screen printing on raw unprimed linen, bringing a strange color as well as a great shine, with or without the large empty margin designed to unbalance the reading of the image. Only three of them are repeated images.
The two by two quad 206 x 165 cm without margins has no equivalent in that theme. It was sold for $ 70M by Christie's on November 12, 2014, lot 10.
The star actor of the Warhol generation is Marlon Brando. In 1953 in The Wild One, Brando and his gang of bikers embody the rebellion against the established order. The young man is the archetype and the archangel of the new rebels without a cause. Andy reappropriates a publicity still on which the modern gang leader rides his Triumph. With his leather jacket and his cap, he is the archetype of the new lawless thug. Andy makes in 1963 a single painting, on a silver background.
This image is reused by Warhol in 1966 in the circumstances of the new threats against the American dream. The challenge is everywhere, against the war in Vietnam, for racial equality, against the social establishment, for non-violence. He seems to have chosen to revisit this theme himself, without a commission from a dealer or a prompting by a friend.
He prepares eight opuses of this Marlon by screen printing on raw unprimed linen, bringing a strange color as well as a great shine, with or without the large empty margin designed to unbalance the reading of the image. Only three of them are repeated images.
The two by two quad 206 x 165 cm without margins has no equivalent in that theme. It was sold for $ 70M by Christie's on November 12, 2014, lot 10.
2
Double Marlon
2008 SOLD for $ 32.5M by Christie's
A double Marlon, 213 x 243 cm, was sold for $ 32.5M by Christie's on May 13, 2008, lot 12. The left margin, much larger than the image, and the monochromy position this view in the following of the disasters, as if Andy had made his choice between his attraction to the first movies played by Marlon and the threats brought by the thugs.
3
Simple Marlon
2012 SOLD 23.7 M$ by Christie's
With a green left margin, a simple Marlon, 104 x 117 cm, was sold for $ 23.7M from a lower estimate of $ 15M by Christie's on November 14, 2012, lot 14.
1966 Where are All his Lovers
2014 SOLD 42 M£ including premium
The sentimental history of Francis Bacon is complex. Dominated by the sadistic Peter, he himself went to be abusive to George. The relationship of Francis with alcohol is not unrelated with this apparent contradiction.
The painting of portraits in large size does not bring the impossible key to the temperament of Francis but enables to track his attempts of communication in life and beyond. He invariably used photos by John Deakin to make recognizable some personal elements of his models within the disasters of heads and bodies.
In 1962, just after the death of Peter in a drinking party, Francis painted Study for Portrait of PL, oil on canvas 198 x 145 cm. The man comfortably seated cross-legged on a sofa is discussing post-mortem while holding a glass of wine. This painting was estimated $ 30 million at Sotheby's on May 14, 2013. It has not been sold.
On February 13 in London, Christie's sells a portrait of George in nearly identical dimensions, painted in 1966 during the sitter's lifetime, lot 10 in the catalog. This painting is announced in the region of £ 30M by the press release.
The huge body of the boxer, probably naked, is writhing on a tiny stool. He communicates with a crooked mouth and an inexpressive gaze. Papers on the rug provide a link to his interlocutor. The physical strength of the body is balanced with the apparent size of the empty room looking enlarged like through a fish eye lens.
On 9 May 2012, Sotheby's sold $ 45 million including premium another portrait of George, again in the same size. Painted in 1976, five years after the suicide of his lover, this haunted image is one of the masterpieces by Francis.
I invite you to play the video shared by Christie's.
POST SALE COMMENT
Portraits of George Dyer by Francis Bacon are highly appreciated by the fans of the artist. This one was sold for £ 42M including premium.
The painting of portraits in large size does not bring the impossible key to the temperament of Francis but enables to track his attempts of communication in life and beyond. He invariably used photos by John Deakin to make recognizable some personal elements of his models within the disasters of heads and bodies.
In 1962, just after the death of Peter in a drinking party, Francis painted Study for Portrait of PL, oil on canvas 198 x 145 cm. The man comfortably seated cross-legged on a sofa is discussing post-mortem while holding a glass of wine. This painting was estimated $ 30 million at Sotheby's on May 14, 2013. It has not been sold.
On February 13 in London, Christie's sells a portrait of George in nearly identical dimensions, painted in 1966 during the sitter's lifetime, lot 10 in the catalog. This painting is announced in the region of £ 30M by the press release.
The huge body of the boxer, probably naked, is writhing on a tiny stool. He communicates with a crooked mouth and an inexpressive gaze. Papers on the rug provide a link to his interlocutor. The physical strength of the body is balanced with the apparent size of the empty room looking enlarged like through a fish eye lens.
On 9 May 2012, Sotheby's sold $ 45 million including premium another portrait of George, again in the same size. Painted in 1976, five years after the suicide of his lover, this haunted image is one of the masterpieces by Francis.
I invite you to play the video shared by Christie's.
POST SALE COMMENT
Portraits of George Dyer by Francis Bacon are highly appreciated by the fans of the artist. This one was sold for £ 42M including premium.
1966 The Killing Love of Francis Bacon
2017 SOLD for $ 39M including premium
In his relationship with Peter, Francis had the role of the victim of a sadist. After Peter, his choice to love George is an experience with a younger man, stronger and more handsome than him. This connection with a thug without culture disturbs the friends of Francis, which adds to his pleasure.
George enters the intimacy of Francis without being involved in his intellectual community. Addicted to alcohol and tobacco and probably naive, he does not see the danger. Francis, who spoke a lot throughout his career, says to others : "Death is desire" or "You kill the thing you love".
The triptychs with front face and profiles in life size are a suitable format for Francis. In painting the portraits of his friends, he studies to what extent his own passions are out of range from any conventional ideal. The reason why Francis's art is fascinating is that he goes so far in introspection up to overcoming the bounds of decency.
George's first triptych, in 1963 on black ground, already includes the distortions that erase the age of the sitter by demeaning the features of the face. It was sold for $ 52M including premium by Christie's on May 17, 2017.
In 1964, two triptychs on a light back express further the banality and stupidity of the model. One of them was sold for £ 26.7M including premium by Sotheby's on June 30, 2014.
On November 16 in New York, Sotheby's sells a triptych on a black background painted in 1966, lot 40 estimated $ 35M. In left and middle images, the crushed nose and the semi-spherical hollows of the orbits have killed any possibility of empathy.
In the same year in large format, George tries to discuss but his disarticulated and sticky body prevents communication. This Portrait of George Dyer Talking, 198 x 147 cm, was sold for £ 42M including premium by Christie's on February 13, 2014.
George enters the intimacy of Francis without being involved in his intellectual community. Addicted to alcohol and tobacco and probably naive, he does not see the danger. Francis, who spoke a lot throughout his career, says to others : "Death is desire" or "You kill the thing you love".
The triptychs with front face and profiles in life size are a suitable format for Francis. In painting the portraits of his friends, he studies to what extent his own passions are out of range from any conventional ideal. The reason why Francis's art is fascinating is that he goes so far in introspection up to overcoming the bounds of decency.
George's first triptych, in 1963 on black ground, already includes the distortions that erase the age of the sitter by demeaning the features of the face. It was sold for $ 52M including premium by Christie's on May 17, 2017.
In 1964, two triptychs on a light back express further the banality and stupidity of the model. One of them was sold for £ 26.7M including premium by Sotheby's on June 30, 2014.
On November 16 in New York, Sotheby's sells a triptych on a black background painted in 1966, lot 40 estimated $ 35M. In left and middle images, the crushed nose and the semi-spherical hollows of the orbits have killed any possibility of empathy.
In the same year in large format, George tries to discuss but his disarticulated and sticky body prevents communication. This Portrait of George Dyer Talking, 198 x 147 cm, was sold for £ 42M including premium by Christie's on February 13, 2014.
1966 Hidden Hedonism in California
2020 SOLD for £ 24M including premium
In 1964 the young David Hockney searches for a Heaven on earth. His plane flies over San Bernardino. His first vision of California is the pattern of pools hidden behind the bungalows, which allow the residents to discreetly practice all forms of hedonism under the bright sun.
Back in California in 1966, David is very excited by an instantaneous color photo on the cover of a swimming pool construction manual. The foreground is a diving board. The water is agitated by the splash that has just been caused by an invisible diver.
The artist copies the photo into a first painted version, A Little Splash, 40 x 50 cm. The painting liberates the theme from its documentary aspect. This scene where no character is left visible symbolizes with much more power the joy of living. The four edges of the canvas are not painted, in order to imitate the framing of a photo.
The effect is spectacular. David painstakingly executes two large acrylics, The Splash, 183 x 183 cm, before the end of the year, and A Bigger Splash, 242 x 244 cm, in the following year. The artist later had fun reminding that he spent two weeks expressing a splash that could not last more than two seconds.
The Splash was sold for £ 2.9M including premium by Sotheby's on June 21, 2006, a very high price for this artist at that time, and is estimated £ 20M for sale by Sotheby's in London on February 11, lot 16. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Hockney offers in his art an interpretation of his fantasy, without seeking realism. For example, the horizon remains inspired by the photographic model but is extended through the bungalow without it being possible to decide whether it is a perspective or a reflection. A similar surreal illusion appears in a work from the same period, Beverly Hills Housewife, sold for $ 7.9M including premium by Christie's on May 13, 2009.
A minimalist architecture better represents Californian homes. The roof in The Splash, still in conformance with the photo from the swimming pool marketing, is indeed too classic. It will be removed in the Bigger Splash and the BH Housewife paintings.
Back in California in 1966, David is very excited by an instantaneous color photo on the cover of a swimming pool construction manual. The foreground is a diving board. The water is agitated by the splash that has just been caused by an invisible diver.
The artist copies the photo into a first painted version, A Little Splash, 40 x 50 cm. The painting liberates the theme from its documentary aspect. This scene where no character is left visible symbolizes with much more power the joy of living. The four edges of the canvas are not painted, in order to imitate the framing of a photo.
The effect is spectacular. David painstakingly executes two large acrylics, The Splash, 183 x 183 cm, before the end of the year, and A Bigger Splash, 242 x 244 cm, in the following year. The artist later had fun reminding that he spent two weeks expressing a splash that could not last more than two seconds.
The Splash was sold for £ 2.9M including premium by Sotheby's on June 21, 2006, a very high price for this artist at that time, and is estimated £ 20M for sale by Sotheby's in London on February 11, lot 16. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Hockney offers in his art an interpretation of his fantasy, without seeking realism. For example, the horizon remains inspired by the photographic model but is extended through the bungalow without it being possible to decide whether it is a perspective or a reflection. A similar surreal illusion appears in a work from the same period, Beverly Hills Housewife, sold for $ 7.9M including premium by Christie's on May 13, 2009.
A minimalist architecture better represents Californian homes. The roof in The Splash, still in conformance with the photo from the swimming pool marketing, is indeed too classic. It will be removed in the Bigger Splash and the BH Housewife paintings.
1966 Farben by Richter
2022 SOLD for £ 18.3M by Sotheby's
In 1966 Gerhard Richter is occupied with the anti-art. For the figurative he copies some blurry photos in black and white. This is not enough for his desired pictorial revolution : he now manages to enter also the abstract art.
To free the abstraction of all emotion he imitates the sample cards of the paint shops, without any fancy in the geometric composition. The carefully aligned flat cells are separated by a narrow white grid. A random disposition leaves a possibility of color confrontation which is a major difference from the color charts of house paint.
Such a process comes in total opposition with the abstract expressionism refuted by Richter as devotional art. The artist nevertheless leaves a human dimension in the earliest opuses by keeping visible the oil paint strokes of his brush, soon superseded by an unpersonalized industrial lacquer. Agnes Martin maintained lifelong a similar humanistic approach in her abstractions.
That 1966 Farben series in made of 16 opuses with 4 to 192 colors. In every opus all color cells are different. The format is a rectangular or square single block of chromatic quadrants, excepted the monumental 144 which displays ten columns of ten colors each for an overall size of 2.50 x 9.50 m.
The number 136 is the third in the catalogue raisonné but the earliest in execution. This oil on canvas 200 x 150 cm features 192 squares. It was sold for £ 18.3M from a lower estimate of £ 13M by Sotheby's on October 14, 2022, lot 107. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Richter begins 1973 with gray monochromes. In 1974 he increases to a maximum of 1025 the number of colors in his Farbtafeln by blending the colors with various tones of gray. He also begins to remove the white bands for a mosaic juxtaposition and to manage a law of permutation for a balanced color disposition. A 1974 1025 Farben with the white stripes was sold for £ 7.4M by Sotheby's on March 7, 2018, lot 8.
He had a predecessor in the Spectrum I painted by Ellsworth Kelly in 1953, juxtaposing different colors in 14 narrow columns in a square canvas.
These early experiments anticipate the use by Richter of the full range of colors in the flame of his 1982 Kerzen and from 1986 in the full format of his Abstrakte Bilder with the squeegee. The ultimate Farbtafel will be the 2007 glass window of Cologne cathedral.
To free the abstraction of all emotion he imitates the sample cards of the paint shops, without any fancy in the geometric composition. The carefully aligned flat cells are separated by a narrow white grid. A random disposition leaves a possibility of color confrontation which is a major difference from the color charts of house paint.
Such a process comes in total opposition with the abstract expressionism refuted by Richter as devotional art. The artist nevertheless leaves a human dimension in the earliest opuses by keeping visible the oil paint strokes of his brush, soon superseded by an unpersonalized industrial lacquer. Agnes Martin maintained lifelong a similar humanistic approach in her abstractions.
That 1966 Farben series in made of 16 opuses with 4 to 192 colors. In every opus all color cells are different. The format is a rectangular or square single block of chromatic quadrants, excepted the monumental 144 which displays ten columns of ten colors each for an overall size of 2.50 x 9.50 m.
The number 136 is the third in the catalogue raisonné but the earliest in execution. This oil on canvas 200 x 150 cm features 192 squares. It was sold for £ 18.3M from a lower estimate of £ 13M by Sotheby's on October 14, 2022, lot 107. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Richter begins 1973 with gray monochromes. In 1974 he increases to a maximum of 1025 the number of colors in his Farbtafeln by blending the colors with various tones of gray. He also begins to remove the white bands for a mosaic juxtaposition and to manage a law of permutation for a balanced color disposition. A 1974 1025 Farben with the white stripes was sold for £ 7.4M by Sotheby's on March 7, 2018, lot 8.
He had a predecessor in the Spectrum I painted by Ellsworth Kelly in 1953, juxtaposing different colors in 14 narrow columns in a square canvas.
These early experiments anticipate the use by Richter of the full range of colors in the flame of his 1982 Kerzen and from 1986 in the full format of his Abstrakte Bilder with the squeegee. The ultimate Farbtafel will be the 2007 glass window of Cologne cathedral.
1966 Rasterbild mit Palmen by Polke
2021 SOLD for $ 21.5M by Sotheby's
An exile from East Germany from 1953 and a student from 1961 to 1967 at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, Sigmar Polke mingled his young political experience of the laying of the images with the avant-garde artistic conceptions of his teacher Joseph Beuys.
Along with his elder fellow Gerhard Richter, another East German passed to the West, he considered the anti-Art of creating large size images from trivial pictures. Relying on Lichtenstein and Warhol, they developed a specifically German form of pop art based on social concerns instead of a mere illustration of the consumerism of their time. Richter wanted to escape the Socialist propaganda art while Polke's family expected to escape poverty.
Lichtenstein's images are supported by the Ben-day dots widely used for the printing of images in the magazines. Polke relied on the similar Raster-dots of wall posters which he enlarged in a painting technique very close to abstract art. A narrative picture thus emerges from Polke's dots just like it emerges at the same time from Richter's blurs.
The themes of the two fellows are varied. Polke specially targets the exotic bliss deceptively promised to the bourgeois by the tour operators.
Painted in 1966, Rasterbild mit Palmen features a row of un-located palm trees in the hazy fog of the Raster-dots. This dispersion on canvas 130 x 110 cm is a rare example of Polke's multi-colored Raster paintings. It was sold for $ 21.5M from a lower estimate of $ 8M by Sotheby's on November 15, 2021, lot 18.
Along with his elder fellow Gerhard Richter, another East German passed to the West, he considered the anti-Art of creating large size images from trivial pictures. Relying on Lichtenstein and Warhol, they developed a specifically German form of pop art based on social concerns instead of a mere illustration of the consumerism of their time. Richter wanted to escape the Socialist propaganda art while Polke's family expected to escape poverty.
Lichtenstein's images are supported by the Ben-day dots widely used for the printing of images in the magazines. Polke relied on the similar Raster-dots of wall posters which he enlarged in a painting technique very close to abstract art. A narrative picture thus emerges from Polke's dots just like it emerges at the same time from Richter's blurs.
The themes of the two fellows are varied. Polke specially targets the exotic bliss deceptively promised to the bourgeois by the tour operators.
Painted in 1966, Rasterbild mit Palmen features a row of un-located palm trees in the hazy fog of the Raster-dots. This dispersion on canvas 130 x 110 cm is a rare example of Polke's multi-colored Raster paintings. It was sold for $ 21.5M from a lower estimate of $ 8M by Sotheby's on November 15, 2021, lot 18.
1966 18.11.66 by Zao Wou-Ki
2020 SOLD for HK$ 114M by Christie's
After the great volcanic panoramas of the early 1960s, Zao Wou-Ki tries new confrontations of colors. The harmony of hues is positioned in front of a background of a very saturated color and the abstraction becomes total. The illegible black signs continue to sprinkle some of these compositions, inviting an empathy with the artist by the appreciation of the movement of the wrist, as in Chinese calligraphy.
On a red background, 16.5.66, 195 x 130 cm, was sold for HK $ 80M by Sotheby's on October 5, 2013. On a yellow background, 17.7.67, 130 x 96 cm, was sold for HK $ 40M by Sotheby's on April 2, 2017.
10.1.68, 82 x 117 cm, was sold for HK $ 69M by Sotheby's on November 24, 2018, lot 133. A cohort of sky blue clouds pass over the bright orange background, leaving a few gaps and giving rise to small green areas in places.
18.11.66, oil on canvas 97 x 195 cm, was sold for HK $ 114M from a lower estimate of HK $ 68M by Christie's on July 10, 2020, lot 127.
The panoramic format is rare for the artist in that period but the composition is nevertheless totally abstract. An intricate network of tiny lines within a wide range of rare shades expresses altogether the tumultuous energy of the universe and the intense emotion of Zao facing the illness of his wife May. A large bright white surface in the bottom right brought a release to the tension of the artist.
On a red background, 16.5.66, 195 x 130 cm, was sold for HK $ 80M by Sotheby's on October 5, 2013. On a yellow background, 17.7.67, 130 x 96 cm, was sold for HK $ 40M by Sotheby's on April 2, 2017.
10.1.68, 82 x 117 cm, was sold for HK $ 69M by Sotheby's on November 24, 2018, lot 133. A cohort of sky blue clouds pass over the bright orange background, leaving a few gaps and giving rise to small green areas in places.
18.11.66, oil on canvas 97 x 195 cm, was sold for HK $ 114M from a lower estimate of HK $ 68M by Christie's on July 10, 2020, lot 127.
The panoramic format is rare for the artist in that period but the composition is nevertheless totally abstract. An intricate network of tiny lines within a wide range of rare shades expresses altogether the tumultuous energy of the universe and the intense emotion of Zao facing the illness of his wife May. A large bright white surface in the bottom right brought a release to the tension of the artist.
1966 Ferrari versus FIA
2017 SOLD for $ 14.5M including premium
The tussle between Enzo Ferrari and the FIA begins in 1962 with the 250 GTO whose very name, O meaning Omologato, indicates Ferrari's challenge to force the hand regarding the compliance with the rules. The best car can not be excluded from competitions, can it ? The FIA gives up. Momentarily only : in 1964 the approval of the 250 LM in GT is rejected.
Also in 1964 the 275 range with a 3.3 liter engine succeeds the 250 without interrupting the development of competition models in small or very small series.
The 275 GTB/C Speziale (C meaning Competizione) was realized in 1964 to prepare for the 1965 season. It was essentially an adaptation of the engine of the 250 LM on a shortened chassis of the 275 GTB. The effort is already focused on any possibility of weight gain. The FIA accepts its homologation with reluctance.
In 1966 another 275 GTB/C model goes further for a new weight gain of about 150 kg. The engineer Forghieri, who had developed the 250 GTO, now designed a chassis and body in very thin aluminum while the robustness of the rear is managed with fiberglass. The realization of the bodywork is a tour de force by Scaglietti. Its Achilles heel is the wire wheel. The approval is partial due to inconsistencies in the dossier concerning the carburetors.
Twelve 275 GTB/C are produced. Most of them will have a good competition history. One of them, maintained in great condition and considered as the most original of the group after a limited use, was sold for € 5,7M including premium by RM Auctions on May 10, 2014.
Collectors prefer cars with a racing history in period. The skill of Wayne Obry and his MPI company in Wisconsin enables to restore the used Ferraris in their original ex-factory configuration and performances. A 275 GTB/C restored by Obry is estimated $ 12M for sale by Gooding at Pebble Beach on August 19, lot 120.
Please watch the video in still views shared by the auction house. Here is also the link to the press release.
Also in 1964 the 275 range with a 3.3 liter engine succeeds the 250 without interrupting the development of competition models in small or very small series.
The 275 GTB/C Speziale (C meaning Competizione) was realized in 1964 to prepare for the 1965 season. It was essentially an adaptation of the engine of the 250 LM on a shortened chassis of the 275 GTB. The effort is already focused on any possibility of weight gain. The FIA accepts its homologation with reluctance.
In 1966 another 275 GTB/C model goes further for a new weight gain of about 150 kg. The engineer Forghieri, who had developed the 250 GTO, now designed a chassis and body in very thin aluminum while the robustness of the rear is managed with fiberglass. The realization of the bodywork is a tour de force by Scaglietti. Its Achilles heel is the wire wheel. The approval is partial due to inconsistencies in the dossier concerning the carburetors.
Twelve 275 GTB/C are produced. Most of them will have a good competition history. One of them, maintained in great condition and considered as the most original of the group after a limited use, was sold for € 5,7M including premium by RM Auctions on May 10, 2014.
Collectors prefer cars with a racing history in period. The skill of Wayne Obry and his MPI company in Wisconsin enables to restore the used Ferraris in their original ex-factory configuration and performances. A 275 GTB/C restored by Obry is estimated $ 12M for sale by Gooding at Pebble Beach on August 19, lot 120.
Please watch the video in still views shared by the auction house. Here is also the link to the press release.
