Andy Warhol (1928 - 1987), Untitled (Art) & ean-Michel Basquiat (1960 - 1988), Untitled (Monkey)

Andy Warhol (1928 - 1987), Untitled (Art). photo courtesy Sotheby's .

Executed in 1986, signed, silkscreen on Levi Strauss & Co. denim jacket; image: 14 in. 35.5 cm (diameter) - jacket: 32 by 24 1/2 in. 81.3 by 62.2 cm. Estimate 30,000—40,000 USD. Lot Sold 25,000 USD

PROVENANCE: Decorated Denim: The Aids Benefit Auction, Barney's New York, 1986, lot 1
Acquired by the present owner from the above sale

NOTE:

DECORATED DENIM: THE AIDS BENEFIT - 1986

Bringing together the worlds of fashion, music, art and celebrity, Decorated Denim was the first major AIDS benefit held in New York City at a time when the city was reeling from the onset of the epidemic. Barney's Department Store, in collaboration with Levi-Strauss & Co, hosted what would long be remembered as an evening of fantasy and glamour in their newly expanded women's store. Artists and designers were each asked to decorate or transform a denim jacket; these were modeled and then auctioned off to raise money for the cause. Celebrities and models including Nell Campbell, Peter Allen, Andie MacDowell, Susan Sarandon, and Iman were invited to descend Peter Marino's spectacular spiral staircase, wearing jackets by such artists and designers as Basquiat, Warhol, Paloma Picasso and Jean-Paul Gaultier. Fashion designers outdid themselves to come up with the most outrageous creations. Charity patrons paid up to $5000 to take a turn at modeling. Madonna, a young rising star and early advocate for AIDS action and awareness, modeled a jacket and waved coyly to the audience. Andy Warhol, whose relationship with Barney's was already well established, attended with a camera. Many years later, Simon Doonan, Barney's creative director, would recall: "Warhol was a customer at Barneys' former Seventh Avenue and 17th Street location, and the artist contributed a camouflage painting for the store's Statue of Liberty-themed windows in 1986, as well as a denim jacket to an auction for AIDS research that same year". In the parade of jackets, the Warhol jacket was modeled as lot 1; the Basquiat as lot 9.

Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960 - 1988), Untitled (Monkey). photo courtesy Sotheby's .

Executed in 1986, oil on Levi Strauss & Co. denim jacket; image: 18 by 15 in. 45.7 by 38.1 cm - jacket: 32 by 24 1/2 in. 81.3 by 62.2 cm. Estimate 30,000—40,000 USD. Lot Sold 77,500 USD

PROVENANCE: Decorated Denim: The Aids Benefit Auction, Barney's New York, 1986, lot 9
Acquired by the present owner from the above sale

photo courtesy Sotheby's .

Sotheby's. Contemporary Art, 27 Sep 10, New York www.sothebys.com