Warhol’s <i>Moonwalk</i> from Buzz Aldrin’s Collection at Heritage Auctions
DALLAS—Andy Warhol’s iconic screenprint Moonwalk, 1987—directly from the private collection of the moonwalker himself, Buzz Aldrin—highlights nearly 350 artworks by luminaries such as David Park and Ed Ruscha, and regional standout artists such as David Michael Bates in Heritage Auctions’ Modern & Contemporary Art Auction May 30 in Dallas.
One of the last works Warhol completed before he passed away, Moonwalk (est. $40,000-$60,000) hung in the home of Buzz and Lois Aldrin home since 1988. This work was to be part of a series entitled "The History of TV," highlighting images of iconic televised moments, which would have included ones of I Love Lucy and the Beatles' famous performance on the Ed Sullivan Show. But Moonwalk was the only work ready to be printed at the time of Warhol’s death. It was one of the last of the great touchstones of 20th culture that Warhol turned into masterpieces of Contemporary art.
The auction also includes Saint-Germain-des-Prés, 1953 (est. $300,000-$500,000), a showpiece by Marc Chagall. “Saint-Germain-des-Prés blends Chagall’s deep respect for color and his early work in Eastern European Jewish folk culture,” said Frank Hettig, Director of Modern & Contemporary Art at Heritage Auctions. “It’s the type of work that will represent his entire artistic oeuvre, today and tomorrow.”
The auctions’ distinct assemblage touches every important movement in Modern & Contemporary art.
New Yorkers of the 19th Century, 2001, by George Condo makes its auction debut after it was acquired directly from the artist (est. $100,000-$150,000). David Park’s White Faced Woman with Elbow, circa 1938-39, exemplifies the abstract expressionism that would come to define the first generation of Bay Area Figurative Movement (est. $80,000-$120,000).
Giorgio de Chirico’s Manichini Coloniali, 1963, appears at Heritage after spending the last 40 years in private collections in Italy (est. $80,000-$120,000). Ed Ruscha’s 99% Angel, 1% Devil, 1983, comes to auction courtesy the single owner who was gifted the work by the artist himself (est. $80,000-$120,000).
The Texas Queen, 1982, by David Michael Bate appears at auction for the first time in its history, and less than a year after Heritage set a world auction record for the Dallas artist (est. $70,000-$90,000). The work represents Bates' distinctive perspective of the physical landscape and cultural identity of the South, in this case the Texas Gulf Coast.
Sugar Bowl with Carved Bird, 1988, by David Salle, is another engaging work featuring fragments of the artist’s leading influences: Neo-expressionism and filmmaking (est. $50,000-$70,000).
Additional highlights include, but are not limited to:
Grapefruit Diptych, 1972, by Roy Lichtenstein (est. $60,000-$80,000).
Packed Coast (Project for West Coast 15 miles long), 1968, by Cristo (est. $30,000-$40,000).
Garbage Drawing #26, 1988, by Mike Kelly (est. $20,000-$30,000).
Unknown (Q), 1996, by Yoshimoto Nara (est. $15,000-$25,000).
Heritage Auctions is the largest auction house founded in the United States and the world’s third largest, with annual sales of more than $900 million, and 900,000+ online bidder members. For more information about Heritage Auctions, and to join and receive access to a complete record of prices realized, with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit HA.com.
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