Prints by WARHOL
1967 Marilyn
Intro
The method used by Andy Warhol of mixing painting and silkscreen on canvas was effective for the multiplication of images. However there is much more simple and the solution has been known for centuries : printing on paper. He coined the name Factory Additions as the publisher of his prints.
The first released set is Marilyn, in 1967, in a single format 91 x 91 cm. The set of ten is made of the single image reappropriated from a 1953 film advertisement that Andy had famously used in 1962 as the symbol of the demise of the American dream.
Each one of the ten images displays other combinations of intense flat colors, departing various moods from the original glamorous image. Andy also enhanced the emotional effects by changing the alignment of some screens.
The Marilyn set was edited in 250 copies numbered 1 to 250 and 26 artist's proofs numbered A to Z.
The success of the Marilyn portfolio is encouraging. Warhol then retrieves his masterpiece of minimalist figurative art from 1962 : Campbell's Soup images differing only by the label indicating the nature of the condensed. The original series included 32 paintings on canvas. Warhol selects ten of them in his 1968 Soups.
The first released set is Marilyn, in 1967, in a single format 91 x 91 cm. The set of ten is made of the single image reappropriated from a 1953 film advertisement that Andy had famously used in 1962 as the symbol of the demise of the American dream.
Each one of the ten images displays other combinations of intense flat colors, departing various moods from the original glamorous image. Andy also enhanced the emotional effects by changing the alignment of some screens.
The Marilyn set was edited in 250 copies numbered 1 to 250 and 26 artist's proofs numbered A to Z.
The success of the Marilyn portfolio is encouraging. Warhol then retrieves his masterpiece of minimalist figurative art from 1962 : Campbell's Soup images differing only by the label indicating the nature of the condensed. The original series included 32 paintings on canvas. Warhol selects ten of them in his 1968 Soups.
1
27/250
2022 SOLD for $ 4.4M by Sotheby's
The complete set 27/250 was sold for $ 4.4M from a lower estimate of $ 2.5M by Sotheby's on November 17, 2022, lot 623.
The complete portfolio 26/250 was sold for $ 1.65M by Sotheby's on November 2, 2012, lot 346.
The complete portfolio 26/250 was sold for $ 1.65M by Sotheby's on November 2, 2012, lot 346.
2
composite
2022 SOLD for $ 3.4M by Sotheby's
A set of ten 1967 Marilyns of which six are dated and one is stamp numbered 135/250 was sold for $ 3.4M from a lower estimate of $ 2.5M by Sotheby's on October 27, 2022, lot 18.
3
100/250
2021 SOLD for $ 3.05M by Sotheby's
The complete set 100/250 was sold for $ 3.05M from a lower estimate of $ 2M by Sotheby's on May 12, 2021, lot 126. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The framed prints were hanging since 1969 in the apartment of their first owner. She had purchased it directly to Andy's associate David Whitney, who had overseen the production of the prints and had selected most of the colors. They are in very good condition with vibrant colors.
The framed prints were hanging since 1969 in the apartment of their first owner. She had purchased it directly to Andy's associate David Whitney, who had overseen the production of the prints and had selected most of the colors. They are in very good condition with vibrant colors.
4
96/250
2014 SOLD for $ 2.2M by Christie's
The set 96/250 was sold for $ 2.2M by Christie's on November 13, 2014 from a lower estimate of $ 1.2M, lot 382.
1970 Flowers
2023 SOLD for $ 2.35M by Christie's
The theme of the Flowers was originally conceived by Warhol in 1964 as an offset lithograph of a photo of seven hibiscus blooms cut off from Modern Photography, from a hint by Henry Geldzahler to escape the Death and Disaster.
Limited to four regularly dispositioned flowers looking like a 2 x 2 ghost Marilyn in a single frame, a large format acrylic and silkscreen ink on canvas 207 x 207 cm dated 1964 was sold for $ 16M by Christie's on May 9, 2022, lot 23A. Behind the flowers, stems and leaves are green.
This four flower image was edited in 1970 in 250 screenprint copies plus 26 artist's proofs 91 x 91 cm. The deliberate absence of definition brings the viewer in a flat weird world of lush colors demonstrating the extent of the artist's modernist creativity..
The complete set 145/250 of ten prints was sold by Christie's on November 13, 2014 for $ 1.15M, lot 384. The set 27/250 was sold for $ 1.1M by Sotheby's on October 24, 2019, lot 63. The complete set 111/250 was sold for $ 1.26M by Sotheby's on October 27, 2022, lot 26. A composite sets was sold for $ 1.48M by Phillips on April 19, 2022, lot 43.
The complete set 184/250, in very good condition and framed, was sold for $ 2.35M by Christie's on April 18, 2023, lot 43.
Limited to four regularly dispositioned flowers looking like a 2 x 2 ghost Marilyn in a single frame, a large format acrylic and silkscreen ink on canvas 207 x 207 cm dated 1964 was sold for $ 16M by Christie's on May 9, 2022, lot 23A. Behind the flowers, stems and leaves are green.
This four flower image was edited in 1970 in 250 screenprint copies plus 26 artist's proofs 91 x 91 cm. The deliberate absence of definition brings the viewer in a flat weird world of lush colors demonstrating the extent of the artist's modernist creativity..
The complete set 145/250 of ten prints was sold by Christie's on November 13, 2014 for $ 1.15M, lot 384. The set 27/250 was sold for $ 1.1M by Sotheby's on October 24, 2019, lot 63. The complete set 111/250 was sold for $ 1.26M by Sotheby's on October 27, 2022, lot 26. A composite sets was sold for $ 1.48M by Phillips on April 19, 2022, lot 43.
The complete set 184/250, in very good condition and framed, was sold for $ 2.35M by Christie's on April 18, 2023, lot 43.
1972 Mao
2012 SOLD for £ 1.6M by Sotheby's
In 1972 the US President Nixon makes his historic travel to China to meet the Great Helmsman.
Warhol then appropriates Chairman Mao's portrait from the 1966 cover of the Little Red Book. The most powerful statesman in the world is for Warhol through that image the symbol of the mass consumption.
For the first time, Warhol had edited the prints before preparing a painted version. He never made clear if he had or not some polical intentions in that project which had been reportedly suggested by his dealer Bischofberger.
The Mao portfolio of screenprints is created by Warhol according to the same format as the 1967 Marilyn, 10 color variants from a single image 91 x 91 cm, in an edition of 250 plus 50 artist's proof sets and 4 printer's proof sets for the use of Styria Studio. The publisher was Castelli.
In the past, Chinese censors had long stopped any versions of Warhol's Mao on their land. The story changed when the art market went to a globalization after the 2008-2010 crisis. The complete set number 10 was sold by Christie's in Hong Kong on May 29, 2010 for HK $ 6.6M from a lower estimate of HK $ 3M.
The copy from the Gunter Sachs collection was the artist's proof set 1/50. It was sold for £ 1.6M by Sotheby's on May 22, 2012. from a lower estimate of £ 300K, lot 31.
The complete portfolio 211/250 accompanied by its original box was sold by Sotheby's on October 27, 2011 for $ 1.43M, lot 33.
The portfolio 120/250 was sold for $ 1.08M by Christie's on November 13, 2014, lot 385.
The artist's proof set number 12/50, complete in its original box, was sold for £ 825K by Christie's on October 16, 2007 from a lower estimate of £ 200K, lot 430.
The complete printer's proof number P.P. 1/4 was sold for $ 1.1M by Sotheby's on November 12, 2014, lot 234.
Warhol then appropriates Chairman Mao's portrait from the 1966 cover of the Little Red Book. The most powerful statesman in the world is for Warhol through that image the symbol of the mass consumption.
For the first time, Warhol had edited the prints before preparing a painted version. He never made clear if he had or not some polical intentions in that project which had been reportedly suggested by his dealer Bischofberger.
The Mao portfolio of screenprints is created by Warhol according to the same format as the 1967 Marilyn, 10 color variants from a single image 91 x 91 cm, in an edition of 250 plus 50 artist's proof sets and 4 printer's proof sets for the use of Styria Studio. The publisher was Castelli.
In the past, Chinese censors had long stopped any versions of Warhol's Mao on their land. The story changed when the art market went to a globalization after the 2008-2010 crisis. The complete set number 10 was sold by Christie's in Hong Kong on May 29, 2010 for HK $ 6.6M from a lower estimate of HK $ 3M.
The copy from the Gunter Sachs collection was the artist's proof set 1/50. It was sold for £ 1.6M by Sotheby's on May 22, 2012. from a lower estimate of £ 300K, lot 31.
The complete portfolio 211/250 accompanied by its original box was sold by Sotheby's on October 27, 2011 for $ 1.43M, lot 33.
The portfolio 120/250 was sold for $ 1.08M by Christie's on November 13, 2014, lot 385.
The artist's proof set number 12/50, complete in its original box, was sold for £ 825K by Christie's on October 16, 2007 from a lower estimate of £ 200K, lot 430.
The complete printer's proof number P.P. 1/4 was sold for $ 1.1M by Sotheby's on November 12, 2014, lot 234.
1975 Mick Jagger
2022 SOLD for $ 1.93M by Sotheby's
The Mick Jagger set of 10 screen prints in large portrait format 112 x 74 cm was edited by Warhol in 1975 in 250 copies plus 50 artist's proofs. Departing from the Marilyn, Flowers and Mao compositions, that set is made of ten different positions from photos taken by the artist. The colors were applied in flat blocks for an improved sense of movement.
The full set 80/250 was sold for $ 1.93M from a lower estimate of $ 800K by Sotheby's on October 27, 2022, lot 17. The prints are signed in felt tip pen by the singer of the Rolling Stones and half of them are also signed by Warhol.
The full set 80/250 was sold for $ 1.93M from a lower estimate of $ 800K by Sotheby's on October 27, 2022, lot 17. The prints are signed in felt tip pen by the singer of the Rolling Stones and half of them are also signed by Warhol.
1983 Endangered Species
1
2021 SOLD for £ 2.9M by Sotheby's
At the instigation of an activist, Warhol publishes a psychedelic series on the Endangered Species in 1983, in 150 copies 96 x 96 cm plus 30 artist's proofs. He also paints canvases from the same images. The animals are chosen from among the most spectacular species protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973.
The playful effect is more obvious than for the other series. Warhol enjoys making up his new stars with pop colors as he had done in the past with Marilyn and Mao. Most are copies of photographs, but the giant panda recaptures the stylized graphics of the artist's early days, when he was directly influenced by advertising art.
The set 125/150 was sold for £ 2.9M from a lower estimate of £ 350K by Sotheby's on March 17, 2021, lot 84. Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
The set 32/150 of Endangered Species was sold for $ 530K by Christie's on October 27, 2010.
The 103/150 was sold for $ 725K by Heritage on October 28, 2015.
For preparing his Endangered Species, Warhol had created a series of different color versions of each image, before selecting one to be printed in the final edition. These initial 'trial proofs' were preserved and released as an addition to the edition. Each trial proof is unique.
The complete set T.P. 16/30 of ten silkscreens was sold by Christie's on November 13, 2014 for $ 1.27M, lot 388. They are signed and have on the reverse the copyright inkstamps of the publisher Ronald Feldman Fine Arts and of the artist. The original justification page and cardboard portfolio boxare also included.
Warhol's contribution to preserving biodiversity does not stop there. In 1986 a book titled Vanishing Animals is illustrated by him with colored drawings. The selected species are less famous but just as threatened as the Endangered Species.
The playful effect is more obvious than for the other series. Warhol enjoys making up his new stars with pop colors as he had done in the past with Marilyn and Mao. Most are copies of photographs, but the giant panda recaptures the stylized graphics of the artist's early days, when he was directly influenced by advertising art.
The set 125/150 was sold for £ 2.9M from a lower estimate of £ 350K by Sotheby's on March 17, 2021, lot 84. Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
The set 32/150 of Endangered Species was sold for $ 530K by Christie's on October 27, 2010.
The 103/150 was sold for $ 725K by Heritage on October 28, 2015.
For preparing his Endangered Species, Warhol had created a series of different color versions of each image, before selecting one to be printed in the final edition. These initial 'trial proofs' were preserved and released as an addition to the edition. Each trial proof is unique.
The complete set T.P. 16/30 of ten silkscreens was sold by Christie's on November 13, 2014 for $ 1.27M, lot 388. They are signed and have on the reverse the copyright inkstamps of the publisher Ronald Feldman Fine Arts and of the artist. The original justification page and cardboard portfolio boxare also included.
Warhol's contribution to preserving biodiversity does not stop there. In 1986 a book titled Vanishing Animals is illustrated by him with colored drawings. The selected species are less famous but just as threatened as the Endangered Species.
2
2022 SOLD for $ 3.1M by Sotheby's
The complete set 91/150 was sold for $ 3.1M from a lower estimate of $ 1.2M by Sotheby's on October 27, 2022, lot 12.
3
2021 SOLD for $ 1.87M by Heritage
The set 64/150 was sold for $ 1.87M by Heritage on October 19, 2021, lot 65060. It had been consigned by its original owner who had carefully protected them from day light by keeping them under her bed in their original box.
