Warhol and Basquiat star in art auction as Phillips de Pury remembers the '80s

Although the 1980s have a lot to answer for (including shell-suits, Bucks Fizz and the bubble perm), it was a time of immense creativity in the art world and the latest Phillips de Pury auction is set to highlight some of the decade's leading artists.

The sale on December 17 will present a vibrant collection of works from the iconic decade, including contemporary art, photographs, design and editions. Included amongst the lots is work by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Enzo Cucchi and Annie Leibovitz to name but a few.

The top lot of the sale will be a collection of Basquiat drawings from 1981 entitled 'Six Works'. The vibrant pencil sketches capture his imagination and energy that was apparent in all his work, leading one critic to say "it seems that Basquiat drawings happened, as opposed to being done."

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The collection is priced at $150,000 - $250,000 and is shown alongside a number of his other drawings and paintings, including a set of five screen prints entitled 'After Leonardo' priced at $25,000 - $35,000.

Andy Warhol is also well represented at the sale, with several of his minor (yet still highly collectible) works set to go under the hammer. A 1986 screen print based on a newspaper advert entitled 'Steaks 99¢' has an estimated price of $12,000 - $18,000, and his print 'After the Party' is valued at $8,000 - $12,000.

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Featuring a table full of used glasses, plates and wine bottles, it was created in 1979 but seems to sum up the following decade of excess to perfection.

The sale will offer both entry-level investors and collectors a chance to get into art collecting, pick up work from some of the 1980's leading names, as well as offering an insightful look back on the decade that is often overlooked in the art world.

It saw high-art mix with street culture, music and fashion to a greater extent than ever before, and saw the explosion of many influential forms (such as graffiti) that influence artists today more than ever.

 

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