Andy Warhol

Private Collection, Switzerland
Sotheby Parke Bernet, London, April 5, 1978, Lot 232
Private Collection, London
Sotheby's, London, October 12, 2007, Lot 25

Georg Frei and Neil Printz, eds., The Andy Warhol Catalogue Raisonné: Paintings and Sculpture 1961 - 1963, Volume I, New York, 2002, fig. 129, p. 168, illustrated

This work is in good condition overall. The sheet is from a spiral notebook with a top serrated edge that has some missing or bent tips, as is to be expected. There are remains from previous mounting hinges on the reverse at each of the vertical edges. There are scattered light handling creases along the outer edges of the sheet, inherent to the artist's working process. Under Ultraviolet light there are areas of discreet repair that have been expertly matched for an even paper tone and are only faintly visible to the naked eye. They are located as follows: ---Along the bottom edge, there are 2 vertical tears extending up from the edge ¾ in. and 1 in., and located 10 in. from the right and 6 ¾ in. from the right respectively. Above the 1 in. tear there are 3 circular areas of paper fill roughly ½ in. in diameter each. ---Along the right edge, there is a horizontal repaired tear extending 1 ½ in. in from the right and located 6 ¾ in. from the top. There is a small ¾ in. diameter circular area, located 2 – 2 ¾ in. from the left and 6 – 6 ¾ in. up from the bottom, that fluoresces a lighter white and perhaps is associated with a previous cleaning. Along the right edge there is an area that slightly fluoresces located 4 ¾ - 7 ¼ in. up from the bottom right corner and extending in from the edge approx. 1 inch which may be from cleaning or color toning. The paper sheet is hinged to rag board intermittently and matted and framed in a dark stained wood strip frame behind Plexiglas.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

As the original study for Coca-Cola [4] (lot 12), 1962, the present work is the extant chronicle of the genesis of American Pop Art. It is both an exquisite drawing and historic artefact that records the poised moment when Pop fully evolved and started fundamentally to affect an entire generation. If Andy Warhol is considered the progenitor of American Pop, Coca-Cola [4] can be seen as the seed of the movement that revolutionised contemporary art practice. Executed in 1962, the present drawing shows the artist's first experiments with the ideas that would occupy him for the rest of his career. It is one of the earliest recorded drawings in the catalogue raisonné, identified by Georg Frei and Neil Printz as the preparatory study for the Coca-Cola painting executed between May and June 1962 and over two metres tall (Georg Frei and Neil Printz, Eds., The Andy Catalogue Raisonné, Vol. 1, Paintings and Sculptures 1961-1963, London and New York 2002, p. 192). Indeed, it is the only known extant drawing for the ensuing series of multiple Coca-Colas, another defining body of work within the artist's oeuvre. (Ibid., p. 181)