Gems 186 by Andy Warhol presents a round-cut ruby resting on its side against a deep red background. The stone appears in rich patches of crimson and orange that mimic the way a real gemstone reflects light. Surrounding the ruby, Warhol adds bright pink shadows filled with sketched blue zigzags and dashes. These contrasting marks give Gems 186 a lively sense of texture and highlight the difference between the physical shape of the gem and its symbolic glamour.
Gems 186 within the Gems Complete Portfolio
Gems 186 is one of four prints in the Gems Complete Portfolio, created in 1978. The suite features rubies, emeralds, and diamonds, each treated with bold outlines and vibrant color fields. Warhol used photography as his starting point, placing gemstones on flat surfaces and then translating those images into stylized screenprints. The result blends still-life tradition with Pop Art clarity. Each print—including Gems 186—focuses on color, shine, and form rather than literal realism.
Warhol’s Glamour, Jewelry, and Hidden Meanings
Warhol’s interest in jewelry ran deep. He collected pieces from Cartier, Harry Winston, Bulgari, and other major houses, often wearing them under his clothes rather than on display. This mixture of desire and secrecy adds an intriguing layer to the Gems series. A curator later discovered that the prints, including Gems 186, emit a fluorescent glow under ultraviolet light. This hidden brightness echoes the private parts of Warhol’s life, especially during a time when being openly gay remained difficult. The “glow” inside each print mirrors the side of Warhol that often stayed out of public view.
Warhol’s circle also included designers such as Paloma Picasso, whose jewelry he admired. His fascination with opulence appears across works from the late 1970s and early 1980s, including After the Party and the Shoes series. These prints capture the elegance, excess, and high style of the social worlds surrounding The Factory.
Color, Texture, and the Gem’s Symbolic Role
In Gems 186, Warhol heightens the ruby’s beauty through strong color contrasts and loose hand-drawn marks. The dark core of the stone feels heavy and rich, while the pink and blue shadows feel playful and graphic. This mix of precision and spontaneity reflects Warhol’s broader approach to still life. He treated the gem not only as an object of wealth but also as a symbol of desire, fantasy, and the allure of luxury goods.
Gems 186 may also carry a connection to one of Warhol’s muses, Liz Taylor, who famously loved rubies. He was famously quoted as saying, “It would be very glamorous to be reincarnated as a big ring on Elizabeth Taylor’s finger.” Taylor’s ruby ring set once broke records at auction, and Warhol had portrayed her many times since the 1960s. In this context, the glowing ruby in Gems 186 feels linked to Taylor’s star power and to the glamour that shaped Warhol’s vision.
Photo credit: Andy Warhol, Gems, unique gelatin silver prints, c. 1978.
