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WARHOL, Andy, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom from the Reigning Queens Edition, 1985
The American artist and filmmaker Andy Warhol was born Andrew Warhola in 1928. There has for years been quite a bit of confusion to where and when … [Read biography »]
Signed Andy Warhol (1928 - 1987), Original Color Screenprint, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom from the Reigning Queens Edition, 1985  |
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| Artist: | Warhol, Andy (1928 - 1987) |
|---|---|
| Title: | Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom from the Reigning Queens Edition, 1985 |
| Medium: | Original Color Screenprint |
| Image Size: | 40 1/4 in x 32 1/16 in (102.24 cm x 81.43 cm) |
| Sheet Size: | 40 3/8 in x 32 1/16 in (102.57 cm x 81.43 cm) |
| Framed Size: | 51 1/2 in x 43 1/2 in (130.8 cm x 110.5 cm) |
| Signed: | Hand-signed by Andy Warhol (1928-1987) in pencil in lower right corner |
| Edition: | Numbered AP 10/10 in pencil in lower right corner; part of the portfolio of 16 screenprints titled Reigning Queens, 1985. Limited edition: 40, 10AP, 5PP, 3HC, 30TP |
| Condition: | This screenprint is in good condition, with bright and vivid colors |
Price :Item# 2168 | $85,000 To speak directly with the Director, Alex Adelman, please call (510) 777-9970 / 1-800-805-7060. |
| Description: | |
Warhol addresses his fascination with the extremes of social hierarchy in this series of Reigning Queens, specifically with the iconography of Queen Elizabeth II. This is the perfect example of Warhol’s ability to transform the entire medium of traditional portraiture and translate it to contemporary, political relevance. Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom was originally created in 1985 as part of a portfolio of 16 screenprints on Lenox Museum Board. It is from a limited edition series in which Warhol also featured Queen Beatrix, Queen Margrethe II, and Queen Ntombi Twala; there also exists a Reigning Queens (Royal Edition) from the same year in which diamond dust was included within the screenprint during production. Printed by Rupert Jasen Smith, New York and published by George C. P. Mulder, Amsterdam. This portrait of Queen Elizabeth details Warhol’s playfulness with line and color while also exhibiting his view on conventional portraiture. The vibrant shades of pink, coupled with bright yellows and teal accents create a radical image of the Queen, perhaps transforming her from the view of the bourgeois upper class to a more palpable, everyday poster image we can all relate to. She now falls into the category of popular kitsch culture, while her elegant features continue to be accented by the drawn line of Warhol’s hand while prominent pixilation of the print details elaborate shading and highlights of the portrait. Frayda Feldman describes this series best: “Warhol intended his portraits to be seen – as vanitas images, history paintings, or simply glamour poses – he did more than any other artist to revitalize the practice of portraiture, bringing renewed attention to it in the avant-garde art world. He reflected the desires and dreams of a new decade and expanded his cast to include the latest characters from the world of sports, television, and politics and also dramatically escalated his portrait commissions” (Feldman 3rd ed. pg. 22-3). Catalogue Raisonné & COA: 1) Feldman, Frayda and Jörg Schellmann. Andy Warhol Prints, A Catalogue Raisonné, 1989. Illustrated pg. 110, cat. no. 334. 2) Feldman, Frayda and Jörg Schellmann, A Catalogue Raisonné. 3rd ed. Listed as 334 on pg. 138 and detailed on pg. 17. About the Framing: | |
Biography of Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol (1928 - 1987)
The American artist and filmmaker Andy Warhol was born Andrew Warhola in 1928. There has for years been quite a bit of confusion to where and when Andy Warhol was born, but according to Andy's two older brothers and the birth certificate that was filed in Pittsburgh in 1945, he was born on August 6th in Pittsburgh. Whether or not this is the day he was born hasn't been proved, but it was on this date he would celebrate his birthday. However, there is no doubt that he died at 6:31 A.M. on Sunday, February 22nd, 1987, at the New York Hospital after a gallbladder operation. He is considered a founder and major figure of the POP ART movement. A graduate of the Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1949, he moved to New York City and gained success as a commercial artist. He got his first break in August 1949, when Glamour Magazine wanted him to illustrate a feature entitled "Success is a Job in New York". But by accident the credit read "Drawings by Andy Warhol" and that's how Andy dropped the "a" in his last name. He continued doing ads and illustrations and by 1955 he was the most successful and imitated commercial artist in New York. In 1960 he produced the first of his paintings depicting enlarged comic strip images - such as Popeye and Superman - initially for use in a window display. Warhol pioneered the development of the process whereby an enlarged photographic image is transferred to a silk screen that is then placed on a canvas and inked from the back. It was this technique that enabled him to produce the series of mass-media images - repetitive, yet with slight variations - that he began in 1962. These, incorporating such items as Campbell's Soup cans, dollar bills, Coca-Cola bottles, and the faces of celebrities, can be taken as comments on the banality, harshness, and ambiguity of American culture.
Later in the 1960s, Warhol made a series of experimental films dealing with such ideas as time, boredom, and repetition; they include Sleep (1963), Empire (1964), and The Chelsea Girls (1966). In 1965 he started working with a rockband called "The Velvet Underground" formed by Lou Reed and John Cale. Andy introduced them to the model and moviestar Nico and she sang on their debut album from 1967 "The Velvet Underground and Nico". Andy would travel around the country, not only with The Velvets, but also with superstar of the year Edie Sedgwick and the lightshow "The Exploding Plastic Inevitable".
On June 3rd, 1968, Valerie Solanis, a rejected superstar, came into The Factory and shot Andy three times in the chest. He was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead, but after having his chest cut up and been given heart massage, he survived. Valerie Solanis turned herself in that night and was put in a mental institution. She was later given a three year prison sentence. After recovering Andy Warhol continued to work. He founded inter/VIEW magazine in 1969 (they changed the name to Interview in 1971), published The Philosophy of Andy Warhol: From A to B and Back Again in 1975 and continued to paint portraits until his death in 1987.
