This incomparable collection provides a comprehensive overview of Andy Warhol’s development from 1948 to 1960. 

It is a beautiful pocketbook that unveils a seldom-seen body of work, which predates Warhol’s graduation from Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh, and spans the artist’s first decade in New York City.

Drawing upon his unparalleled experience as a former Curator of the Estate of Andy Warhol, Steven Bluttal presents an unusual juxtaposition of important works, as unique and insightful as it is visually compelling. This attentive curation explores the symbiotic relationship between Warhol’s commercial portfolio and his own private expression.

Warhol’s private drawings, including still life, intimate portraiture, and documentation of his travels, are contextualised alongside studies for his commercial work of the same period, for clients including Harper’s Bazaar, Doubleday (now Random House), and Bourgois. Extracts from his privately printed, hand-coloured books, Wild Raspberries and 25 Cats Name Sam, are also included.

This collection of works charts the development of Warhol’s use of media, from his first signature aesthetic, the ‘blotted-line technique’, to his use of gold leaf, spray-paint, intricate collage, ballpoint pen, Aniline dye and tempera.

Published on the occasion of the exhibition, Andy Warhol: 1948-1960 at Timothy Taylor Gallery, London (25 January – 3 March 2007).