About this work
A 1983 screenprint on Lenox museum board by Andy Warhol from an edition of 150. Hand signed and numbered in pencil by the artist. The work is in very good condition and includes a Certificate of Authenticity.
Printer: Rupert Jason Smith. Publisher: Ronald Feldman Fine Arts. Commissioned by gallerists and environmental philanthropists Ronald and Frayda Feldman, Warhol turned his characteristically kinetic pop sensibility and propensity for the discarded toward the natural world. These vibrant images contrast the reality of the dwindling number of each species they represent. When reflecting on death in general Warhol wrote, “I'm so sorry to hear about it. I just thought that things were magic and that it would never happen.” Warhol’s tongue in cheek naiveite enriches our understanding of his artistic treatment of subjects on the brink of extinction; it’s as if his loving depictions are the very magic that might immortalize entire species. Warhol’s 1983 Endangered Species stands out not only as a striking and appealing series in the career of Andy Warhol, but also as a consequential forerunner to contemporary socially engaged art. Since 1983, the bald eagle and Pine Barrens tree frog populations have rebounded remarkably through the work of environmentalists in the United States. However, the African elephant and seven other species depicted in Warhol’s series of prints remain endangered
