Heritage Auctions’ April 17 Prints & Multiples Auction has several standout works. From stunning Ellsworth Kelly lithographs to Andy Warhol’s most celebrated series, there are prints that appeal to a wide range of tastes and budgets. If you need some guidance, our Modern & Contemporary Art specialists have you covered. Discover their favorite works in the sale:
Frank Hettig
Vice President, Modern & Contemporary Art
Ellsworth Kelly, Red Curve 1997 is a stunning example of his focus on the dynamic relationships between shape, form and color. He was one of the first artists to create irregularly shaped canvases. This print is an important example, which shows his relation with Minimalism; Hard-Edge painting and Color Field.
Ellsworth Kelly (1923-2015)
Red Curve, 1997
Lithograph in red on Rives BFK paper
The Italian artist Michelangelo Pistoletto is best known for his “mirror paintings” and is a leading figure in the development of Arte Povera and Conecptual art. This series reflects the viewers and their environments. The fractals are mirrors with irregular shapes, of different colors and dimensions, characterized by a series of numbers written in the middle of the surface. The fractals let viewers perceive the sense of infinity. Each time you will see this object or multiple, you will be surprised and never it seems the same.
Michelangelo Pistoletto (b. 1933)
Frattali (Blue), 1999-2000
Acrylic on mirrored glass
Leon Benrimon
Director, Modern & Contemporary Art – New York
One of Andy Warhol’s most celebrated images and series, I love Grevy’s Zebra from Endangered Species portfolio. The series was born from a conversation between Warhol and his dealers, Ronald and Freya Feldman, in 1983, discussing ecological issues and endangered species. Of the 10 endangered species chosen by Warhol, eight are still on that list today. Grevy’s Zebra, in particular, utilizes a hyperrealist color palate, making it one of the more interesting prints from the series. As a result, it is highly sought after by Warhol collectors, but as incredibly difficult to find in the marketplace.
Andy Warhol (1928-1987)
Grevy’s Zebra, from Endangered Species, 1983
Screenprint in colors on Lenox Museum Board
Amaryllis in Vase from Moving Focus is one of David Hockney’s most desirable prints. A product of his move to California in the mid-1970s, and at the same time, his first collaboration with Kenneth Tyler and Tyler Graphics, Moving Focus is Hockney’s largest and most ambitious series of color lithographs. I just love how Hockney is able to take a subject matter very familiar to him, florals, and create multiple viewpoints within the same work, giving the work a sense of movement, as the series title suggests. This work is offered quite frequently in the marketplace, but rarely in this condition.
David Hockney (b. 1937)
Amaryllis in Vase, from Moving Focus, 1984
Lithograph in colors on TGL handmade paper, with full margins
Holly Sherratt
Director of Prints & Multiples
Heritage Auctions is pleased to offer this monumental work by Roy Lichtenstein, Nude with Blue Hair, from Nudes (est. $300,000-500,000) from the Collection of John Hutcheson. Hutcheson was a Master Printer in all of the traditional and experimental printing techniques. Over the years he worked at the world’s leading print ateliers. Nude with Blue Hair exemplifies Lichtenstein’s signature comic book style: the artist adhered to a strict color palette of primary colors heavily outlined in black, while also contrasting geometrical shapes and lines against the curves of the subject’s body. This lot offers the rare opportunity to own an iconic work by Lichtenstein from the collection of the printer whose work with artists such as Frank Stella, Helen Frankenthaler and Hockney helped influence art history.
Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997)
Nude with Blue Hair, from Nudes, 1994
Relief in colors on Rives BFK paper
Sol Lewitt’s smart and playful Color Bands is my favorite lot in the sale. Drawing on his Conceptual and Minimal work from the 1960s, Lewitt explores the mesmerizing optical effects of curves and lines executed in alternating bands of vibrant colors. This lively set of prints from 2000, reminds me of Lewitt’s monumental wall drawings that adorned the atrium of my hometown San Francisco Museum of Modern Art from 2000-08.
Sol LeWitt (1928-2007)
Color Bands, set of eight, 2000
Linocuts in colors on Somerset Velvet paper
Taylor Curry
Modern & Contemporary Art Consignment Director
Acquired directly from the publisher by our collector, KAWS’ 2015 The Thing’s That Comfort, Stay Steady, and No One’s Home (three works) have not been framed and are in mint condition. KAWS, who transforms pop culture characters into thought-provoking works of art, is not only an artist but is also a toy and clothing designer whose recent collaborations with Nike and Uniqlo sold out within days. It’s exciting to be able to offer this work by KAWS, who has become of one of the faces of Contemporary Art today.
KAWS (b. 1974)
The Thing’s That Comfort, Stay Steady, and No One’s Home (three works), 2015
Silkscreens in colors on Saunders Waterford white paper
The Witch, from Andy Warhol’s Myths series, depicts fantastic characters and imaginary heroes that epitomize American childhood. Each depiction presents an immediately recognizable and identifiable icon and represents a nostalgic version of the American dream. Some art historians and critics have speculated that the 10 characters Warhol chose represent the different facets of his personality. A true collectible, these screenprints have become some of Warhol’s most collected work.
Andy Warhol (1928-1987)
The Witch, from Myths, 1981
Screenprint in colors with diamond dust on Lenox Museum Board
Naomi Thune
Modern & Contemporary Art Consignment Director
John Register was an American realist painter best known for his sunlit images of the West Coast. His existential images of Los Angeles have become iconic in his depiction of public spaces mostly vacant of human activity. This image, Register’s 1989 Hollywood, was used as the cover of the novel Hollywood by Charles Bukowski which chronicled the making of the film Barfly and is unusual as the artist seldom depicted artificial light. A paperback copy of the novel is included with this lot.
John Register (1939-1996)
Hollywood, 1989
Silkscreen in colors on heavy wove paper
I’ve always admired Lynda Benglis, an important American sculptor and visual artist. These two unique monotypes – her 1989 Untitled and another bearing the same name – are reminiscent of The Fallen Paintings, her signature poured latex floor pieces from 1968. They also were printed at Garner Tullis Workshop, which is known for high quality printmaking.
Lynda Benglis (b. 1941)
Untitled, 1989
Monotype in colors on handmade paper
Lynda Benglis (b. 1941)
Untitled, 1989
Monotype in colors on handmade paper
Look at more items like these in our Prints and Multiples department, or view our upcoming auctions and auction archives.
ArtisticFULL~…~