Modern and Contemporary sale
Launches May 11, 2010
www.artnet.com/ModernandContemporary
artnet Auctions offers continuous online auctions of fine art, prints and photographs. Beginning May 11, artnet Auctions will present 60 modern and contemporary works of art by artists including Damien Hirst, Alberto Giacometti, Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol. Represented in the sale are some of the most important artists of the 20th-21st centuries.
Leading the sale is an exceptional collection of works by cutting edge contemporary artists including Gilbert + George, Damien Hirst, Richard Pettibone and Wayne Thiebaud. Ferrocene, 2008 is one of two works by Damien Hirst offered in the sale. This 36 x 52 inch spot painting in vibrant primary colors is offered in pristine condition (estimate: 550,000 USD – 750,000 USD). In contrast, Richard Pettibone’s diminutive Soup Can, 1968 is a 5 x 4 inch replica of the Warhol original, in acrylic on canvas (estimate: 75,000 USD – 125,000 USD). Other contemporary highlights include Hot Dog Row, 2000 a mixed media work by Wayne Thiebaud (estimate: 225,000 USD – 325,000 USD) and Torture Cross, 1981 a graphic collage by the irreverent British duo Gilbert + George (estimate: 35,000 USD – 45,000 USD).
Pop art also figures prominently in the sale including works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol. Six works by Andy Warhol trace the artist’s career from the 1954 Happy Bug Day, a unique watercolor on offset lithograph (estimate: 20,000 USD – 28,000 USD) to two stunning 1987 Camouflage screenprints (estimates: 15,000 USD – 20,000 USD each). Groundbreaking street artist Jean-Michel Basquiat is represented with a rare work in acrylic on brown paper, Untitled (Taxi Cab), 1980 (estimate: 375,000 USD – 475,000 USD).
The auction also features a collection of modern masterworks by Willem de Kooning, Alberto Giacometti, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso. Giacometti has set numerous auction records in recent months. Included in this section is an exquisite pencil on paper drawing by the artist, Tête d’homme (estimate: 100,000 USD – 200,000 USD). Among the other modern highlights are two remarkable works by Pablo Picasso, Bacchanale, 1959, a dramatic linocut which juxtaposes earth tones with cerulean blue and white (estimate: 75,000 USD – 85,000 USD) and Untitled, 1963, a subtle watercolor depicting the horse and the bull, iconic imagery which recurs throughout Picasso’s oeuvre (estimate: 150,000 USD – 200,000 USD).
Rounding out the sale are sculptures by some of the most celebrated artists of the last century including Harry Bertoia and Henry Moore, and Latin American works of art by Jesús Rafael Soto and Wifredo Lam.
We invite you to browse the sale. Visit www.artnet.com/ModernandContemporary
About artnet:
artnet has been online since 1995 and is host to approximately 2,000,000 visitors each month. Through its Price Database of over four million auction sales results and its Gallery Network of over 2,200 galleries worldwide, artnet is the leading online resource for the international art market. With artnet Auctions, artnet has added a transaction platform to its successful information services.
www.artnet.com | www.artnet.de | www.artnet.fr
Artnet Worldwide Corp.
61 Broadway, 23rd Floor
New York, NY 10006-2701
Sarah Bradley
+1-212-497-9700 ext. 197
sbradley [at] artnet.com
Image above:
Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Surrounded Islands, 1982
Mixed media collage in two parts, 58 x 96 inches
