It’s an opportunity that any art enthusiast will have long been waiting for…
London and New York-based auction house Christie’s have unveiled the list of celebrated artworks to be sold at their 2021 Contemporary Edition sale, which will give collectors the chance to get their hands on famous pieces by artists Andy Warhol.
Three of Warhol’s 1980s works are available to bidders as a part of the sale – 1985’s Vesuvius will go under the hammer alongside The Star and Mammy, both iconic screenprints from Warhol’s 1981 series, From Myths.
These three pieces will be sold alongside a range of works by famous artists of the 20th and 21st century as a part of the sale, which has been curated by Christie’s prints specialist, Lisa Machi.
So, what else will be available when Warhol’s work of the 80s is sold next month? The Contemporary Edition line-up includes pieces by a range of artists who became famous for their work with screen-printing, a technique which can be seen plenty throughout this collection.
Keith Haring’s untitled piece from his Three Lithographs series is perhaps one of the more globally recognisable pieces available within the sale, with several of Haring’s signature-style figures seen sitting on each other’s shoulders. This motif will be the most familiar to those in the UK, with Haring having provided the inspiration for the faceless figures seen in the government’s Change 4 Life campaign, which was a television staple in the late-00s to mid-10s.
There’s also Duke, a famous 2004 piece by the American artist Ellen Gallgaher which incorporates a range of mixed media in its make-up. The most recently produced piece on sale within the Contemporary Edition auction is Vote by Jonas Wood, created back in 2018.
Price estimates are yet to be revealed by Christie’s themselves, though previous sale prices of the pieces indicate that the work will certainly generate some strong competition amongst potential buyers when the auction begins! In the lead-up to a change of ownership in 2011, Mammy’s estimated value was set at between $12,000 and $18,000, eventually selling for over $21,000.
The Star also sold for a price far in excess of its estimate at Christie’s back in 2018. Having been valued at between $40,000 and $60,000, the hammer eventually came down at $62,500. As for Vesuvius, this iconic print was given the very same valuation before its last sale in 2019, though its sale on the day was closed for an incredible $106,250!
Given their growing value, the three Warhol pieces could fetch well over $150,000 collectively, with estimates hinting that the collection could even break the $200,000 benchmark when sold.
The collection of contemporary work, one of many Contemporary Edition sales at Christie’s over the years, will be on show at their New York location before the bidding begins online on July 9th.
To us, this looks like an unmissable opportunity for any fan of the Pop Art king to own their very own Warhol work – we may even send in a bit for ourselves!
The bidding for Christie’s Contemporary Edition collection will begin at 12:00am EDT on July 9th. More information can be found here.