Photographs by Andy Warhol was originally released in 1980, as a complete portfolio of 12 works that capture the vibrant artist-socialite scene of 1970s New York. It was in those years that Warhol lived his life like “an endless party,” rubbing shoulders with the likes of Bianca Jagger, Truman Capote, Jacqueline Onassis, Salvador Dalí, Henry Kissinger, and more, all of who are featured in Warhol’s Photographs. Warhol was the celebrities celebrity, and his personal photographs reveal the intimate life he shared with some of the world’s most interesting people.
These photos are elusive, rarely showing up at auction. It has been years since the last portfolio was auctioned. When Warhol’s original photos do hit the auction block, they are typically unsigned, 8″ x 10″ prints, only authenticated by the Warhol Foundation.
The works in Photographs, however, each measure 16″ x 20″ and are signed on the verso by Warhol, making them an extraordinary find for Warhol’s photography. The photographs are printed on Twinrocker hand-made paper with deckled edges, under Warhol’s supervision. The look and feel of these sheets add greatly to the significance and authenticity of the portfolio.
The photos were printed by Christopher Makos, and the portfolio was published by Galerie Bruno Bischofberger in Switzerland in 1980.
The photos included in this portfolio are as follows:
1- Bianca Jagger at Halston’s house, New York.
2- His Holiness Pope John Paul II, St. Peter’s Square, Rome.
3- Henry Kissinger & Elizabeth Taylor Warner.
4- Truman Capote at home, New York.
5- Salvador Dali & Ultra Violet, New York.
6- Diana Vreeland, “Empress of Fashion,” New York.
7- Halston at home, New York.
8- Tennesse Williams & Producer Lester Persky, New York.
9- Liza Minelli at Halston’s house, New York.
10- Andy Warhol, Self-Portrait, Montauk, Long Island.
11- Peter Malatesta & Monique Van Vooren, Washinton D.C.
12- Bianca Jagger, Liza Minelli & Jacqueline Onassis in Liza’s dressing room, New York.