NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s presents the Prints & Multiples Sale taking place October 26-27, 2010. The two day sale features 454 lots and is expected to realize in excess of $9 million. Works included in the sale span the 19th through the 21st century, with a large portion devoted to the Post-War and Contemporary categories. This exciting selection of prints and multiples showcases works by Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Motherwell, Claes Oldenburg, Robert Rauschenberg, and Ed Ruscha among others.
The 19th Century Print section includes 12 works by Mary Cassatt, featuring six of her extremely rare color prints. Cassatt’s Woman Bathing (La Toilette), circa 1891 (estimate: $200,000-300,000), holds the world auction record for a Cassatt print when an impression of this subject achieved $376,500 in November 1999. This work distinctively combines the influence of Japanese printmaking with Cassatt’s characteristic portrayal of intimate, domestic scenes.
This sale will be the first of seven sales this fall which feature works from the Collection of Max Palevsky. The 37 lots featured are expected to realize in excess of $580,000. Out of humble beginnings, Mr. Palevsky developed into an incredibly successful businessman and art collector, purchasing his first piece of art in 1960. Mr. Palevsky sold or donated works that did not have a special place within his collection, making the present group the most personal reflection of his collecting style.
Highlighting the selection of prints from the Collection of Max Palevsky is Pablo Picasso’s Buste de Femme au Chapeau, 1962, (estimate: $220,000-280,000). Executed late in his career, this print is arguably Picasso’s greatest graphic representation of Jacqueline Roque, whom he married in 1960. The work epitomizes the great legacy of “the two Jacqueline decades” and is one of Picasso’s most arresting portraits.
Within the Modern Section, two prints by Edvard Munch emerge as highlights. Munch’s Vampire II, printed circa 1913-1914 (estimate: $500,000-700,000) dramatically juxtaposes deep hues of green, blue, red, and ochre, thereby heightening the emotional impact of Munch’s macabre vision of love. Death in the Sickroom, 1896 (estimate: $90,000-120,000) illustrates the tragic death of the artist’s beloved sister Sophie. This striking lithograph contrasts rich black ink and empty white spaces, evoking a sense of isolation and loss that resonates with the grim subject matter. Artists also featured in the Modern Section include Georges Braque, Joan Miró, and Marc Chagall.
This season’s sale has an exceptionally strong Post-War & Contemporary section. Robert Motherwell’s Blue Elegy, 1987 (estimate: $80,000-120,000) is a remarkable example from his Elegy to the Spanish Republic series, in which the artist meditated on tragedy in the modern world. The sale also includes a complete set of Andy Warhol’s iconic Campbell’s Soup II, 1969, comprised of ten screenprints in colors (estimate: $120,000-180,000), these works are perhaps the most resonant symbols of 1960s Pop Art.
A standout multiple in the Post-War & Contemporary Section is Claes Oldenburg’s Profile Airflow, 1969, pictured below (estimate: $80,000-120,000). Executed as a cast-polyurethane relief over lithograph in colors, Oldenburg’s homage to Chrysler’s original 1934 aerodynamic design innovation is itself a technical marvel, combining the artist’s astute observation of this classic automobile with the most progressive techniques of artistic fabrication.
The two-day sale kicks off on Tuesday October 26 at 10:00 am and concludes with the fourth and final session on Wednesday October 27th
