Andy Warhol

Donald J. Christal, Los Angeles
Jonathan Novak Contemporary Art, Los Angeles 
Private Collection, New York
Artemus, New York 

Frayda Feldman and Jörg Schellman, Andy Warhol Prints: A Catalogue Raisonné 1962-1987, New York 2003, cat. no. II.90-99, pp. 82-83, illustrated in color
Steven Bluttal and Dave Hickey, Eds., Andy Warhol "GIANT" Size, London 2006, p. 507, illustrated in color 

The prints are in very good condition overall. The unprinted areas of the sheets have darkened over time as is commonly seen with these prints. There is a slight undulation to some of the sheets. Under very close inspection and under raking light, a few scattered and unobtrusive fine lines of craquelure are visible. Each print is hinged verso to the matte along the top edge. Framed under Plexiglas. Minor imperfections in the individual prints are as follows, noted by their F&S catalogue raisonné numbers: # 90: A few spots of stray ink at the upper left corner. On the verso, remnants of adhesive from previous hinging are visible at the right edge. #92: A small handling crease at upper edge. A few tiny, raised areas of ink a lower right. On the verso, a few inconspicuous skinned spots are visible at the edges. #93: A pinpoint loss and associated scuff at lower left corner. On the verso, a few scattered spots of stray ink are visible. #94: A pinpoint loss at lower left corner. On the verso, there is evidence of slight discoloration and remnants of previous hinging. #95: The left corner is slightly soft. A small scuff visible in the figure’s nose under raking light. #96: A tiny printing imperfection at the center left edge. On the verso, there is evidence of slight discoloration at the extreme edges of the sheet and minor staining from previous adhesive at the edges of the sheet. #97: The left corner of the sheet is slightly soft and there is a small scuff in the black ink at lower center. A ¼-inch hairline crease at the center left edge. On the verso, very faint impressions from previous hinging and slight discoloration. #98: A few inconspicuous losses at the upper right corner. Two small, faint creases at the lower left corner. A possible pinpoint loss in the figure’s nose. #99: A tiny nick in the lower left corner. On the verso, there is evidence of slight discoloration and there are a few skinned spots from previous hinging at the edges with darker areas of discoloration from a previous adhesive.
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.

Despite considering himself apolitical, Andy Warhol in 1971 displayed an unexpected interest in China following the astounding amount of press coverage received after the People’s Republic replaced Nationalist China in the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council. China’s political shift opened up newfound diplomatic relations with the United States and, in doing so, Americans were eager to uncover its unknown culture. In an effort to forge a political relationship with the United States, and advertise the new atmosphere of warmth and congeniality in the communist regime, China invited an American table tennis team to tour the country. Shortly afterwards, President Nixon announced that he would be the first U.S. President to travel to China, which ignited a media outpour as both countries prepared. Undoubtedly, influencers in China, like Warhol himself, were conscious of the power of the American media: both that it functioned at exponential, quick rates and that Americans were blindly dependent on it. Thus, it is clear that China targeted the United States as a vehicle to spread their propaganda due to the way Americans coveted the experience of listening to the radio, watching television, and reading the newspaper at all times. Warhol himself responded to the ongoing reports surrounding the new communist regime, commenting: "I've been reading so much about China…They're so nutty. They don't believe in creativity. The only picture they ever have is of Mao Zedong. It's great. It looks like a silkscreen" (David Bourdon, Warhol, New York 1989, p. 317).

In many ways, Warhol’s series of Mao portraits can be considered an extension of his already established exploration of fame—how it is constructed, received, and communicated—as demonstrated in his iconic portraits of celebrities such as Jacqueline Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, and Elizabeth Taylor. In fact, Warhol is noted for saying that he had read in Life Magazine that Mao Zedong was the most famous man in the world. As such, Warhol was inherently attracted to Mao as a subject because he was the ultimate manifestation of a foreigner’s celebrity, as posters of his portrait were displayed in storefronts on nearly every street corner throughout all of China, similar to how movie stars were exalted by their American fans. However, the omnipotence of Mao’s image, in ways such as this, was a reflection of the type of dictatorial power he exercised, as opposed to a true account of the way he was revered by the Chinese public. In this way, in his series of Mao portraits, Warhol reveals how the chairman constructed fame as a political weapon.  

This revelation presented an alternative avenue of fame for Warhol, as he had only previously showcased his celebrity subjects as victims to the unstoppable consequences of fame—namely, constant media scrutiny and commodification. Warhol had masterfully expressed the inescapable, dehumanizing effects of the media’s invasiveness through his innovative silkscreening technique, an artistic medium that mimicked the printing apparatuses used to regurgitate copies of celebrity scandals en masse. As Warhol himself has described, the process was meant to be wholly mechanistic in order to eliminate any artistic intervention or individuation onto the finished product. In doing so, Warhol sought to employ repetition as both an artistic style and cultural exploration. However, in his series of Mao portraits, Warhol eschews this aesthetic and returns to painting as a response to Mao’s previously noted denunciation for creativity.

With all this in mind, this particular set of ten highly decorated Mao screenprints presents a rare instance where the artist boldly communicates his political and moral character. In comparison to his other political series, such as Race Riots and Electric Chair from 1963, Warhol employs painterly embellishments as a method of retaliation. For Warhol, the idiosyncratic painterly marks function to protest against Mao’s aggressive policies against individualism exercised during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s. During this time, Mao sought to enforce both class and cultural conformity by eliminating any professions and practices that had any traces of self-expression, and thus, did not contribute to the "revolutionary spirit of the masses." In order to create the ultimate communist community, Mao punished artists, intellectuals, and musicians through humiliating "re-education" discipline, such as building walls or repairing roads (David Bourdon, Warhol, New York 1989, p. 318). As such, Warhol redefines long-standing associations with Mao by purposefully appropriating his image from the official book Quotations from Chairman Mao Zedong—more commonly referred to as Little Red Book­—which each citizen was advised to carry at all times. In doing so, Warhol repudiates Mao's major tool for ensuring widespread obedience, and simultaneously, effaces the principles of Maoist ideology visually represented by this monumental portrait. Firstly, Warhol derides Mao’s intolerance for artistic expression by coloring each illustration before silk screening the image. Furthermore, by juxtaposing each distinct, one-off portrait against one another, it is clear that Warhol attempted to reinvent each "Mao" as a representation of a unique individual by utilizing colors that stand out against one another. Finally, by enhancing each portrait with garish colors, Warhol exposes immoral issues concealed within Mao’s totalitarian system—namely, race, gender, and sexuality. Warhol accomplishes this through the coloring of Mao’s skin, which regenerates each sitter as both realistic and fantastical ethnicities. Similarly, Warhol creates the allusion of make up by using distinct colors for Mao’s lips, eyelids, and cheeks—drawing a subversive parallel to his glamorous silkscreen portraits of female celebrities, such as Marilyn Monroe. As a whole, in this set of ten prints, Warhol was able to elevate his innovative silkscreen technique and unique aesthetic for pop culture in order to make a political claim against dictatorial injustice.