Andrew Huber
Head of Department
Lot 17○
ANDY WARHOL(1928-1987)Diamond Dust Shoes
1980
1980
Amended
16 November 2022, 17:00 EST
New YorkSold for US$1,000,000 inc. premium
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Randy Reynolds
Specialist, Head of Sale
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Diamond Dust Shoes
1980
numbered PA70 050 on the stretcher bar, with The Estate of Andy Warhol stamp, with the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. stamp and inscribed VF on the reverse
synthetic polymer paint, silkscreen ink and diamond dust on canvas
42 by 50 in.
106.7 by 127 cm.
This work was executed in 1980.
1980
numbered PA70 050 on the stretcher bar, with The Estate of Andy Warhol stamp, with the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. stamp and inscribed VF on the reverse
synthetic polymer paint, silkscreen ink and diamond dust on canvas
42 by 50 in.
106.7 by 127 cm.
This work was executed in 1980.
Footnotes
Provenance
The Estate of Andy Warhol
Gagosian Gallery, New York
Acquired directly from the above by the present owner circa 2000
Exhibited
New York, Gagosian Gallery, Andy Warhol: Diamond Dust Shoes, 1999, no. 42, illustrated in color
Andy Warhol's Diamond Dust Shoes series demonstrates everything about Andy Warhol that made him the icon he is today: seriality, repetition, and an everyday item elevated to high art status.
Andy depicted shoes in the beginning of his career when he was working as a commercial illustrator for Harper's Bazaar, Vogue and other women's fashion magazines. One of his first cross-over exhibitions into the fine art world was at The Bodley Gallery in 1956 featuring his shoe illustrations fancifully done in gold leaf and each one named after a celebrity, including Elvis Presley and James Dean.
Andy went onto pioneer the use of silk screening as a way to create multiple paintings with the same subject matter, depicting celebrities directly, including Marilyn Monroe and Elvis, as well as flowers and Campbell's soup cans. Warhol continued to explore the dichotomy between the everyday and the revered throughout his career and personally returned to these subjects in a retrospective series in 1978.
He began to experiment with the diamond dust technique in 1979 when Warhol's friend and diamond dealer John Reinhold gave him a jar of diamond dust. The diamond dust effect gave the surface of his works a shimmering effect reminiscent of his use of gold leaf in the late 1950s, creating a magical touch of glamour. Andy first utilized the diamond dust effect in the Gem series which depicts diamonds and cut stones with a glittering effect and in his abstract Diamond Dust Shadows series.
The Diamond Dust Shoes series began when Halston sent a box of shoes downtown for an advertisement campaign, when they all fell onto the floor, Warhol liked the way they looked and began to arrange the shoes in different compositions and take Polaroids of them. The Polaroids were silkscreened for this series and the resulting paintings demonstrate how something simple as a shoes can take on a life of their own when arranged as a pointed star and given the lush hues of red, pink, and white.
Andy reflected on his return to his earliest work with the Diamond Dust Shoes series in "The Andy Warhol Diaries" on July 24, 1980 "I'm doing shoes because I'm going back to my roots. In fact, I think maybe I should do nothing but shoes from now on." The Diamond Dust Shoes series was exhibited in its entirety at Gagosian Gallery New York in 1999. Andy made a total of 48 paintings in this series in three sizes: 27 paintings that were 90 x 70 inches, 17 paintings that were 50 x 42 inches and 4 paintings that were 14 x 18 inches. He only utilized the star-pointed composition in the 50 x 42 inch size and made four other examples besides the painting presently represented.
As described by Vincent Fremont, "Andy created the Diamond Dust Shoe paintings just as the disco, lamé and stiletto of Studio 54 had captured the imagination of the Manhattan glitterati. Andy once again reflected the times he was living in through his paintings." This series has proven to be both timeless and simultaneously capturing the vibrancy of the moment in which he created it.
Saleroom notices
A third party has provided an irrevocable bid on this lot (lot 17), which Bonhams will execute during the sale at a value that ensures the lot will sell at the level of the irrevocable bid amount unless there are any higher bids. Bonhams and/or this irrevocable bidder may benefit financially if the lot is sold in excess of the irrevocable bid amount, and may incur a loss if the lot fails to so sell at such level. The irrevocable bidder, who may bid in excess of the irrevocable bid amount, will be compensated if (s)he is not the successful bidder, based on the final hammer price, and will not otherwise be compensated if s(he) is the successful bidder.
