Notes

Andy Warhol gained widespread recognition for his distinctive ‘blotted-line’ drawing technique, which greatly appealed to prominent fashion brand art directors. Warhol’s method involved meticulously tracing photographs or other source images with bold ink on a non-absorbent surface and subsequently transferring them onto paper. This process yielded remarkably original and expressive lines in his artwork.

In the present lot, Warhol ingeniously ‘tattooed’ the body of the corseted woman with well-known logos and brand names, essentially using it as a persuasive tool to attract potential clients. Notably, he included his contact phone number prominently scrawled across the front of her outfit. This artwork served a dual purpose, functioning both as a business card and a fine art creation, exemplifying Warhol’s unapologetic fusion of art and commerce.¹

Warhol is considered to be one of the most influential American artists of the 20th century and part of the Western art movement called Pop Art. He was also a filmmaker, photographer, painter, commercial illustrator, music producer, writer and even fashion model. Throughout his career, Warhol developed new approaches to artmaking and so challenged the boundaries of art. A pioneer of multimedia and an early reality TV star, he foreshadowed the age of social media by sharing his daily life. Beyond art, he ventured into advertising, branding, film, and even wildlife conservation. Despite his fame, Warhol never forgot his working-class Pittsburgh roots. His pop art style disrupted the elitism of 1960s New York, celebrating the ordinary.

^1. https://www.halcyongallery.com/artists/1-andy-warhol/works/380/, accessed 15 September 2013.

Provenance

Halcyon Gallery, London.

Private Collection.