RICHARD AVEDON (American, 1923-2004) ANDY WARHO

PROVENANCE
Sotheby's, NEW YORK, October 5, 1994, lot 61

LITERATURE
McGraw Hill, RICHARD AVEDON PORTRAITS, 1976, n.p.; Whitney Museum of American Art, EVIDENCE, 1944-1994/RICHARD AVEDON, 1994, p. 150

In June 1968, Valerie Solanas, a peripheral member of The Factory and a militant feminist, shot Andy Warhol. Solanas was purportedly upset that Warhol had reneged on a promise to film a play she had written. After five hours in surgery, the bullets were removed and the doctors repaired as much of the damage as possible. Upon recovering, Warhol asked his friend Richard Avedon to photograph his scarred abdomen. Solanas eventually pleaded guilty to a charge of first-degree assault and spent three years in prison.