Ladies and Gentlemen 131 by Andy Warhol is one of fourteen screenprints from the Ladies and Gentlemen portfolio. The portrait captures an unidentified sitter in dramatic side profile with her head tilted upward, creating an elegant, almost statuesque pose. Warm browns and deep blacks define the face and neck, while translucent fields of mint green, coral pink, and muted red drift across the composition. A grainy black texture frames the figure, and the stark white background heightens the contrast. As a result, Ladies and Gentlemen 131 feels both graceful and quietly theatrical.
Ladies and Gentlemen 131 and the Gilded Grape
Warhol created the Ladies and Gentlemen portfolio in 1975 after Italian art dealer Luciano Anselmino commissioned a series devoted to New York’s drag community. Anselmino had also commissioned Warhol’s Man Ray portfolio. Although the project originally envisioned well-known performers, Warhol preferred a more authentic approach. He asked Interview Magazine editor Bob Colacello and assistant Ronnie Cutrone to recruit sitters from the Gilded Grape, a downtown nightclub near the Factory.
The resulting portraits documented members of New York’s Black and Latinx queer community at a pivotal cultural moment. Warhol photographed each sitter with his Polaroid camera before transforming the images into screenprints. Consequently, Ladies and Gentlemen 131 preserves both the immediacy of photography and the expressive freedom of painting.
Color, Composition, and Performance
Like the other works in the series, Ladies and Gentlemen 131 combines monochrome portraiture with floating blocks of translucent color. Here, the upward tilt of the model’s head creates a feeling of confidence and aspiration rather than confrontation. Meanwhile, the mint green and coral overlays soften the composition without obscuring the sitter’s features.
Unlike the more flamboyant portraits in the portfolio, this print relies on gesture rather than intense color to command attention. The elongated neck and lifted chin lend the figure an almost sculptural quality. At the same time, the layered colors suggest the fluid relationship between outward appearance, performance, and identity.
Ladies and Gentlemen 131 by Andy Warhol as Part of His Larger Body of Work
Although the sitter in Ladies and Gentlemen 131 remains unidentified, Warhol portrays her with the same dignity he granted celebrated figures such as Liz Taylor, Mick Jagger, and Marilyn Monroe. Elsewhere in the portfolio, Warhol also portrayed activists including Marsha P. Johnson and Wilhelmina Ross, reflecting the broader cultural significance of the series.
Today, Ladies and Gentlemen 131 stands as one of the portfolio’s most refined and contemplative images. Its restrained palette, elegant profile, and layered construction reveal Warhol’s ability to transform an anonymous sitter into an unforgettable presence while documenting an often overlooked chapter of New York’s cultural history.
Photo Credit: Ronnie Cutrone (American, 1948–2013), Andy Warhol Photographing a Drag Queen (Marsha P. Johnson), 1975. Photograph. Image courtesy of Skarstedt Gallery.
