Warhol, Robert Indiana lead Hindman’s May 5 prints & multiples sale

Andy Warhol, ‘Four Polo Players,’ estimated at $60,000-$80,000

CHICAGO – Hindman‘s May 5 Prints and Multiples auction will present more than 180 works from old master through contemporary prints, photography, and Picasso ceramics. The auction begins with a notably strong session of Pop Art from Robert Indiana, Andy Warhol, and Roy Lichtenstein, with other impressive artworks in the contemporary session by Wayne Thiebaud, Ed Ruscha, and Ellsworth Kelly. The photography session includes works by Berenice Abbott, Ansel Adams, and Marilyn Minter. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

Andy Warhol’s Four Polo Players from 1985 , estimated at $60,000-$80,000, and two Mao portraits from 1972, each estimated at $30,000-50,000 are particularly significant works. The polo image began as a cover commission for the 10th anniversary of Polo magazine. The group of unique screenprints with collage on colored graphic paper, created two years before Warhol’s death, reflects his genius obsession with repetition. His Mao portraits capture his knack for surfing the zeitgeist–President Richard Nixon made his historic trip to China in 1972, and the trip included a meeting with the Chinese leader–and they provide yet another pointed example of his exploration of fame and its meaning and value.

Robert Indiana, ‘Numbers Portfolio,’ estimated at $40,000-$60,000

Additional highlights include Robert Indiana’s complete Numbers Portfolio from 1968. Numbers are a dominant theme in Indiana’s work, and might be second only to his Love images in their recognizability and esteem. Each of the 10 prints in the portfolio, which comes with its original clamshell case, is signed, dated, and numbered as 74/125. The portfolio of Indiana prints carries an estimate of $40,000-$60,000.

Wayne Thiebaud, ‘Dark Cake,’ estimated at $20,000-$30,000

Also featured in the lineup is Cy Twombly’s Natural History Part II: Some Trees of Italy, a complete portfolio of eight 1976 prints, estimated at $30,000-$50,000; Wayne Thiebaud’s 1983 color woodcut Dark Cake, number 89 of 200, estimated at $20,000-$30,000; and a complete portfolio of Frank Stella’s Aluminum Series. Dating to 1970, the portfolio of nine prints is signed, dated, and numbered 31/75, and estimated at $20,000-$30,000.